1 00:00:11,040 --> 00:00:13,320 Hello everyone. Welcome back to Logical Bible 2 00:00:13,320 --> 00:00:16,120 Study. We're all about taking a look at 3 00:00:16,120 --> 00:00:19,440 the literal sense of Scripture and particularly the Gospel 4 00:00:19,440 --> 00:00:21,920 reading for today's Mass. What was Jesus trying to 5 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:24,040 communicate in the original context? 6 00:00:24,040 --> 00:00:27,080 What does the text mean when we let it speak on its own terms 7 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:30,880 and we try and do this in a rigorous Catholic academic way? 8 00:00:32,119 --> 00:00:36,840 So today we're going to look at 2 passages, Matthew 13 versus 1 9 00:00:36,840 --> 00:00:42,840 to 9 and then versus 18 to 23. Now this episode is going to be 10 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:46,920 the same on two days this week. So the reason for that is the 11 00:00:46,920 --> 00:00:50,160 parable is given in Wednesday's lectionary reading. 12 00:00:50,160 --> 00:00:53,640 So Wednesday of week 16 in ordinary time, we get to hear 13 00:00:53,640 --> 00:00:58,360 the parable versus 1:00 to 9:00 and then the parable is actually 14 00:00:58,360 --> 00:01:00,840 explained by Jesus later in the chapter. 15 00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:06,120 So in verses 18 to 23, which we hear on Friday of week 16, we 16 00:01:06,120 --> 00:01:08,520 get to hear Jesus own explanation of the parables. 17 00:01:08,520 --> 00:01:11,560 So I've combined both of those together and we'll look at both 18 00:01:11,560 --> 00:01:15,840 of those at the same time, which means this episode is going to 19 00:01:15,840 --> 00:01:20,120 be exactly the same on Wednesday of week 16 in ordinary time and 20 00:01:20,120 --> 00:01:23,560 also Friday of week 16. So you might have already heard 21 00:01:23,560 --> 00:01:25,760 this episode, depending on when you're what day you're 22 00:01:25,760 --> 00:01:28,510 listening. So here's today's text. 23 00:01:28,510 --> 00:01:34,110 Matthew, chapter 13, verses 1 to 9 and verses 18 to 23. 24 00:01:35,870 --> 00:01:40,030 Jesus left the house and sat by the lakeside, but such large 25 00:01:40,030 --> 00:01:42,910 crowds gathered round him that he got into a boat and sat 26 00:01:42,910 --> 00:01:45,350 there. The people all stood on the 27 00:01:45,350 --> 00:01:49,910 beach and he told them many things in parables, he said. 28 00:01:50,350 --> 00:01:53,880 Imagine a seller going out to sow as he sowed. 29 00:01:53,920 --> 00:01:57,840 Some seeds fell on the edge of the path, and the birds came and 30 00:01:57,840 --> 00:02:01,040 ate them up. Others fell on patches of rock, 31 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:05,600 where they found little soil and sprang up straight away because 32 00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:09,759 there was no depth of earth. But as soon as the sun came up 33 00:02:09,759 --> 00:02:13,080 they were scorched and not having any roots, they withered 34 00:02:13,080 --> 00:02:16,640 away. Others fell among thorns, and 35 00:02:16,640 --> 00:02:18,720 the thorns grew up and choked them. 36 00:02:19,640 --> 00:02:23,370 Others fell on rich soil and produced their crop, some a 37 00:02:23,370 --> 00:02:30,090 hundredfold, some 60, some 30. Listen, anyone who has ears, 38 00:02:32,170 --> 00:02:35,730 Jesus said to his disciples, You are to hear the parable of the 39 00:02:35,730 --> 00:02:38,410 sower. When anyone hears the word of 40 00:02:38,410 --> 00:02:41,610 the Kingdom without understanding, the evil one 41 00:02:41,610 --> 00:02:44,730 comes and carries off what was sown in his heart. 42 00:02:45,530 --> 00:02:48,570 This is the man who received the seed on the edge of the path. 43 00:02:49,540 --> 00:02:52,300 The one who received it on patches of rock is the man who 44 00:02:52,300 --> 00:02:55,020 hears the word and welcomes it at once with joy. 45 00:02:56,020 --> 00:03:00,300 But he has no root in him. He does not last, Let some trial 46 00:03:00,300 --> 00:03:03,620 come or some persecution on account of the Word, and he 47 00:03:03,620 --> 00:03:07,780 falls away at once. The one who received the seed in 48 00:03:07,780 --> 00:03:10,540 thorns is the man who hears the Word. 49 00:03:10,900 --> 00:03:14,380 But the worries of this world and the law of riches choke the 50 00:03:14,380 --> 00:03:16,820 Word. And so he produces nothing. 51 00:03:18,070 --> 00:03:21,430 And the one who received the seed in rich soil is the man who 52 00:03:21,430 --> 00:03:23,790 hears the word and understands it. 53 00:03:24,310 --> 00:03:27,870 He is the one who yields a harvest and produces now a 54 00:03:27,870 --> 00:03:33,150 hundredfold, Now 60, now 30. So here we are at the start of 55 00:03:33,150 --> 00:03:35,590 Matthew, chapter 13. And that's often called the 56 00:03:35,590 --> 00:03:39,990 parables chapter of Matthew. So here Matthew has assembled 7 57 00:03:39,990 --> 00:03:43,590 Kingdom parables. It's possible that Jesus spoke 58 00:03:43,590 --> 00:03:45,990 them all on the one day as Matthew presents it here. 59 00:03:45,990 --> 00:03:48,550 Or they could have been ones that he spoke at different 60 00:03:48,550 --> 00:03:50,350 times. But Matthew has assembled them 61 00:03:50,350 --> 00:03:54,190 and put them all in one chapter. Some of the parables will see in 62 00:03:54,190 --> 00:03:57,510 the coming days. As we look at Matthew 13, they 63 00:03:57,550 --> 00:03:59,270 only appear in the Gospel of Matthew. 64 00:03:59,270 --> 00:04:01,710 So there's going to be some ones in here that you won't hear all 65 00:04:01,710 --> 00:04:04,230 that often. But of course, today we have one 66 00:04:04,230 --> 00:04:06,310 that's very well known, the parable of the sower. 67 00:04:06,950 --> 00:04:10,430 Some scholars call Matthew, Chapter 13, the para, the Sermon 68 00:04:10,430 --> 00:04:12,230 on the Sea. So you know how there's the 69 00:04:12,230 --> 00:04:14,150 sermon on the plane and the Sermon on the Mount. 70 00:04:14,630 --> 00:04:16,670 This is kind of like a sermon on the sea. 71 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:20,519 Now we're going to look at parables, and this is where I 72 00:04:20,519 --> 00:04:23,560 think the science of exegesis becomes really focused and 73 00:04:23,560 --> 00:04:26,320 really useful. We need to do proper, solid 74 00:04:26,320 --> 00:04:30,680 exegesis on the parables. Many would say that parables 75 00:04:30,680 --> 00:04:34,280 have lots of hidden meanings, and you can make of parables, 76 00:04:34,480 --> 00:04:36,640 you know, draw lots of different meanings out of parables. 77 00:04:36,640 --> 00:04:40,720 And that is true to an extent. Jesus probably did deliberately 78 00:04:40,720 --> 00:04:44,360 choose parables that had multiple spiritual meanings, but 79 00:04:44,360 --> 00:04:48,200 still, it's generally the case. In fact, almost always the case 80 00:04:48,200 --> 00:04:52,160 that when Jesus picks a parable, he has one specific, literal 81 00:04:52,160 --> 00:04:54,680 meaning in mind. He means one specific thing. 82 00:04:54,920 --> 00:04:58,280 There's one thing he's trying to say about the Kingdom of God to 83 00:04:58,280 --> 00:05:01,600 his audience, and that's what we want to get at in this podcast. 84 00:05:01,600 --> 00:05:04,800 We want to look at what is probably the literal sense of 85 00:05:04,800 --> 00:05:06,400 the text. What did Jesus mean? 86 00:05:07,850 --> 00:05:10,490 Now we're lucky because for this parable, Jesus actually gives us 87 00:05:10,490 --> 00:05:13,010 the interpretation. He tells us what he means, 88 00:05:13,010 --> 00:05:15,330 though most of the time we don't get to hear that. 89 00:05:17,170 --> 00:05:20,330 So in verses 1 to 9, Jesus gives the parable of the sower, and 90 00:05:20,330 --> 00:05:23,530 that's read on Wednesday of week 16 in ordinary time. 91 00:05:23,890 --> 00:05:26,330 And then there's a gap where he talks about something else. 92 00:05:26,330 --> 00:05:30,010 For verses 10 to 17, the disciples ask him about parables 93 00:05:30,010 --> 00:05:32,850 in general. And that discussion about 94 00:05:32,850 --> 00:05:36,960 parables is we hear that in the electionary on Thursday of week 95 00:05:36,960 --> 00:05:39,960 16 in ordinary time. And then he comes back to 96 00:05:39,960 --> 00:05:43,440 interpreting the parable of the Sowa in verses 18 to 23. 97 00:05:43,800 --> 00:05:47,160 And we hear that on Friday of week 16 in ordinary time. 98 00:05:47,440 --> 00:05:50,160 So today's episode is going to look at the Wednesday and the 99 00:05:50,160 --> 00:05:53,160 Friday and there will be a separate one for Thursday of 100 00:05:53,160 --> 00:05:57,240 week 16. This podcast is all about 101 00:05:57,240 --> 00:06:01,890 getting at the literal sense, and for parables that means what 102 00:06:01,890 --> 00:06:04,090 did Jesus intend when he gave that parable? 103 00:06:04,290 --> 00:06:07,170 And as I said, we're going to see that Jesus actually gave us 104 00:06:07,170 --> 00:06:09,930 the interpretation. So that's why we want to read 105 00:06:10,050 --> 00:06:12,410 the parable with the interpretation rather than 106 00:06:12,410 --> 00:06:15,690 trying to just read the parable and then coming up with our own 107 00:06:15,690 --> 00:06:18,410 interpretation. So we started first one. 108 00:06:18,530 --> 00:06:22,490 Jesus left the house. What it actually says there is 109 00:06:22,610 --> 00:06:25,050 on that same day Jesus went out of the house. 110 00:06:25,370 --> 00:06:28,090 So it's on the same day that he finished up at the end of 111 00:06:28,090 --> 00:06:30,700 chapter 12. So if you read the end of 112 00:06:30,700 --> 00:06:33,700 chapter 12, he was in the house in Capernum speaking to the 113 00:06:33,700 --> 00:06:36,580 crowds, and that's when his relatives come and they want to 114 00:06:36,580 --> 00:06:38,420 speak to him. They're waiting outside the 115 00:06:38,420 --> 00:06:41,180 house in Capernum. Now, it's significant that 116 00:06:41,180 --> 00:06:44,820 Matthew mentions this. He wants his readers to notice 117 00:06:44,820 --> 00:06:48,710 that this occurs on the same day. 118 00:06:48,950 --> 00:06:51,590 What else happened in chapter 12 on the same day? 119 00:06:51,830 --> 00:06:54,590 Well, he had the confrontation with the Pharisees in chapter 120 00:06:54,590 --> 00:06:58,550 12, and many of the parables, as we'll see, continue this same 121 00:06:58,550 --> 00:07:02,910 theme of division. It says he sat by the lakeside, 122 00:07:02,910 --> 00:07:05,870 so he's sitting down, which is the common teaching position of 123 00:07:05,870 --> 00:07:08,910 a rabbi. Verse two, such large crowds 124 00:07:08,910 --> 00:07:11,510 gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there. 125 00:07:13,020 --> 00:07:16,860 So they've become so many people by the lakeside that he has to 126 00:07:16,860 --> 00:07:21,540 get out into a boat so that they don't press in too hard against 127 00:07:21,540 --> 00:07:24,340 him. And this boat would have been 128 00:07:24,340 --> 00:07:26,580 like a large canoe. And they've actually found a 1st 129 00:07:26,580 --> 00:07:29,540 century fishing boat in Israel that you can look at online if 130 00:07:29,540 --> 00:07:32,260 you'd like to, which is very similar to probably what what he 131 00:07:32,260 --> 00:07:34,780 would have sat on. And so he's sitting in the boat 132 00:07:34,780 --> 00:07:36,380 and the people who stood on the beach. 133 00:07:37,340 --> 00:07:39,540 Now sound carries quite well over water. 134 00:07:39,540 --> 00:07:42,460 So when Jesus is speaking here on the boat, it's not just to 135 00:07:42,460 --> 00:07:44,820 get away from the crowd. It's also so that they can hear 136 00:07:44,820 --> 00:07:47,140 him better as he speaks over the crowd. 137 00:07:47,500 --> 00:07:51,100 There would have been thousands on the slope going down to the 138 00:07:51,100 --> 00:07:54,100 sea, and they could probably hear him speaking from the boat. 139 00:07:55,780 --> 00:07:58,580 Verse three, he told them many things in parables. 140 00:07:59,850 --> 00:08:01,690 So what's a parable? Well, it's from the Greek 141 00:08:01,890 --> 00:08:04,930 paraboli, and that basically means comparison. 142 00:08:05,250 --> 00:08:08,530 And when we look at the Thursday episode, which is a discussion 143 00:08:08,530 --> 00:08:11,290 about why does Jesus speak in parables, we'll look at this in 144 00:08:11,290 --> 00:08:13,930 more detail. There were some parables in the 145 00:08:13,970 --> 00:08:17,970 Old Testament, but Jesus uses them in quite a specific way. 146 00:08:17,970 --> 00:08:21,810 They're basically a short, memorable story from daily life 147 00:08:21,810 --> 00:08:25,010 that confounds profound, conveys profound spiritual truth. 148 00:08:27,420 --> 00:08:30,860 In most of Jesus parables, Jesus sets up some sort of familiar 149 00:08:30,860 --> 00:08:33,700 situation that everyone in the crowd would be familiar with, 150 00:08:34,100 --> 00:08:37,100 and then he basically says the Kingdom of God is like this. 151 00:08:37,539 --> 00:08:41,419 So Jesus hope is that by setting things up this way, people will 152 00:08:41,419 --> 00:08:44,980 understand a bit more about how the Kingdom of God works by 153 00:08:44,980 --> 00:08:48,940 seeing kind of an analogy of how something similar works in 154 00:08:49,140 --> 00:08:51,820 everyday daily life. But of course it's a bit more 155 00:08:51,820 --> 00:08:54,740 complicated than that. We can't just stop at saying it 156 00:08:54,740 --> 00:08:57,460 helps make the Kingdom of God clearer, because Jesus actually 157 00:08:57,460 --> 00:09:00,980 says that he chooses to speak in parables because he wants to 158 00:09:00,980 --> 00:09:04,100 make things less clear, which is quite surprising. 159 00:09:04,100 --> 00:09:07,260 And we'll see that when we look at the Thursday episode, which 160 00:09:07,260 --> 00:09:11,940 is verses 10 to 17. We'll discuss more about the 161 00:09:11,940 --> 00:09:15,880 purpose of parables. Now, Jesus has done parables 162 00:09:15,960 --> 00:09:19,360 earlier in the Gospel of Matthew, but now Matthew here in 163 00:09:19,360 --> 00:09:22,760 verse three says he begins to speak to them at length in 164 00:09:22,760 --> 00:09:25,440 parables. So he gives the crowd rapid fire 165 00:09:25,440 --> 00:09:28,160 parables and that confuses the disciples. 166 00:09:28,160 --> 00:09:30,360 They wonder why he starts talking in parables. 167 00:09:30,680 --> 00:09:34,960 As we'll see when we look at verse 10, there's probably some 168 00:09:34,960 --> 00:09:37,240 parables that Jesus spoke that we don't get to hear. 169 00:09:37,240 --> 00:09:40,440 But Matthew just gives his audience the ones that he feels 170 00:09:40,440 --> 00:09:43,740 the most appropriate for his purpose, which is to show that 171 00:09:43,740 --> 00:09:47,940 Jesus is the Messiah. So he starts by saying this, 172 00:09:48,060 --> 00:09:50,340 imagine a sower going out to sow. 173 00:09:51,300 --> 00:09:53,660 So we're talking here about a farmer planting seed. 174 00:09:54,260 --> 00:09:56,580 Remember, he's speaking to the Jews in Galilee. 175 00:09:56,580 --> 00:09:58,940 He's by the Sea of Galilee. And they probably could have 176 00:09:58,940 --> 00:10:02,460 looked around and seen fields, and they probably could have 177 00:10:02,460 --> 00:10:05,900 seen farmers sowing seeds just as Jesus is speaking. 178 00:10:06,500 --> 00:10:09,400 They live in quite an agricultural area now. 179 00:10:09,400 --> 00:10:12,440 When a farmer was sowing seed, the general strategy was to 180 00:10:12,440 --> 00:10:16,680 plant seed everywhere and then play out the ground when he 181 00:10:16,680 --> 00:10:20,480 plants some on the path and then the rocky ground and the thorns. 182 00:10:20,480 --> 00:10:22,240 As we'll see, he's not being careless. 183 00:10:22,400 --> 00:10:25,200 He knows that some of his seed is not going to work, but his 184 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:28,240 strategy is to scatter it everywhere and then ploughed 185 00:10:28,240 --> 00:10:31,440 into the ground. He knows that some of it won't 186 00:10:31,440 --> 00:10:33,440 work and some of it will miss the mark. 187 00:10:33,440 --> 00:10:36,880 But he knows the strategy is the wider the space he can cover 188 00:10:36,880 --> 00:10:39,720 with the seeds, the more crop he's able to produce. 189 00:10:39,920 --> 00:10:41,840 And that's an interesting metaphor for the Kingdom, isn't 190 00:10:41,840 --> 00:10:45,520 it? Also, this image of a sower 191 00:10:45,520 --> 00:10:48,600 sowing seed would also have been familiar from the Old Testament. 192 00:10:48,800 --> 00:10:51,640 There's a few times in the Old Testament where God is depicted 193 00:10:51,640 --> 00:10:55,400 as a sower. So you see that in Isaiah 55 and 194 00:10:55,400 --> 00:10:59,930 Jeremiah 31 and Hosea chapter 2 and in the Old Testament, the 195 00:10:59,930 --> 00:11:03,810 seed of the Sower represents God's word that God hopes will 196 00:11:03,810 --> 00:11:07,530 produce an abundant crop. Interestingly, now in this 197 00:11:07,530 --> 00:11:11,610 parable, the seed is Jesus own word, not God's word. 198 00:11:11,610 --> 00:11:13,130 It's actually kind of Jesus word. 199 00:11:13,410 --> 00:11:16,850 So this could be a subtle reference to Jesus claiming to 200 00:11:16,850 --> 00:11:18,770 be God. Perhaps because certainly 201 00:11:18,770 --> 00:11:21,770 Matthew's readers would have recognized the similarity to 202 00:11:22,330 --> 00:11:25,050 what God says about sowing seeds in the Old Testament. 203 00:11:25,050 --> 00:11:27,370 So that's an interesting thing we often miss here. 204 00:11:28,550 --> 00:11:32,310 Now as we go on versus 4 to 8, Jesus tells the parable, and 205 00:11:32,310 --> 00:11:33,950 we're all pretty familiar with the parable. 206 00:11:34,270 --> 00:11:37,830 So the sea gets spread into four places, so it falls on the edge 207 00:11:37,830 --> 00:11:40,510 of the path. And that's eaten by the birds 208 00:11:41,350 --> 00:11:44,390 because it's quite visible, so easily accessible to the birds. 209 00:11:45,070 --> 00:11:47,070 Some of it falls on rocky ground. 210 00:11:47,510 --> 00:11:51,110 And Israel did have quite rocky volcanic rock that was not good 211 00:11:51,110 --> 00:11:55,400 for growing soil. And Jesus says the seed on rocky 212 00:11:55,400 --> 00:11:58,920 ground finds little soil and sprang up straight away. 213 00:11:59,120 --> 00:12:02,360 It had no depth of earth and when the sun came up it was 214 00:12:02,360 --> 00:12:05,560 scorched and not having any roots it with it away. 215 00:12:06,560 --> 00:12:09,040 So in other words, the seed wasn't properly grounded. 216 00:12:09,040 --> 00:12:12,320 It wasn't in good soil, so it didn't last very long. 217 00:12:12,360 --> 00:12:16,240 Even though it did spring up quickly, it doesn't last long. 218 00:12:17,160 --> 00:12:20,600 In verse 7 there's another group of seeds that are sown among 219 00:12:20,600 --> 00:12:23,160 thorns. So the thorns grow up and they 220 00:12:23,160 --> 00:12:26,810 choke it, and even though it has good soil and good roots, it 221 00:12:26,810 --> 00:12:31,970 produces no fruit. And then in verse 8, some seed 222 00:12:31,970 --> 00:12:36,290 falls on the good rich soil. It grows tall and strong, and as 223 00:12:36,290 --> 00:12:39,770 the parable says, it yields 3060 and a hundredfold. 224 00:12:40,850 --> 00:12:43,850 Now, for a farmer working in ancient Galilee, thirtyfold is 225 00:12:43,850 --> 00:12:45,570 an excellent harvest. That's great. 226 00:12:45,890 --> 00:12:49,330 And then sixtyfold is awesome. You would only get that a couple 227 00:12:49,330 --> 00:12:51,130 of times in your career as a farmer. 228 00:12:51,530 --> 00:12:53,890 To get a hundredfold would be miraculous. 229 00:12:54,280 --> 00:12:56,400 And that's kind of the point, isn't it, When Jesus says 230 00:12:56,600 --> 00:12:58,600 yielding A hundredfold, that's incredible. 231 00:12:58,600 --> 00:13:02,240 That can't be done by man alone. So already we have hints here 232 00:13:02,560 --> 00:13:04,480 that we're dealing here with the work of God. 233 00:13:06,040 --> 00:13:10,240 Now notice what the measure of success here is in this parable. 234 00:13:11,160 --> 00:13:13,760 How do we tell whether the seed was successful or not? 235 00:13:13,760 --> 00:13:16,440 Well, it's how much grain or fruit it produces. 236 00:13:17,560 --> 00:13:22,400 This is something people often miss in order of most productive 237 00:13:22,400 --> 00:13:26,790 seed to least productive. The most productive in the 238 00:13:26,790 --> 00:13:28,870 parable is the rich soil, obviously. 239 00:13:28,870 --> 00:13:32,390 Then the next most productive, interestingly, is the rocky 240 00:13:32,390 --> 00:13:35,550 ground, the sea that falls on rocky ground because they 241 00:13:35,550 --> 00:13:39,150 produce fruit for a short time, which is interesting. 242 00:13:39,190 --> 00:13:40,750 It's just the fruit doesn't last. 243 00:13:41,270 --> 00:13:45,550 And then the next most productive would be the thorns. 244 00:13:45,910 --> 00:13:49,270 So in a way we could say it doesn't produce any fruit. 245 00:13:49,270 --> 00:13:51,470 Even though it looked promising, as though it was going to 246 00:13:51,470 --> 00:13:53,310 produce fruit, it doesn't actually produce any. 247 00:13:53,890 --> 00:13:57,130 And then lastly, those on the path, they don't even start the 248 00:13:57,130 --> 00:13:59,170 process of producing fruit at all. 249 00:14:00,210 --> 00:14:03,450 So that's interesting. Verse 9, Jesus finishes the 250 00:14:03,450 --> 00:14:07,130 Powerball by saying, listen, anyone who has ears, or most 251 00:14:07,690 --> 00:14:11,850 translations here say he who has ears, let him hear basically 252 00:14:11,850 --> 00:14:15,770 means absorb into one's heart. That's what it means to hear. 253 00:14:15,770 --> 00:14:18,050 It means to really reflect on and meditate on. 254 00:14:18,830 --> 00:14:21,310 So Jesus here is signaling that what he's just said is 255 00:14:21,310 --> 00:14:23,630 important. He wants the crowd to go away 256 00:14:23,630 --> 00:14:26,590 and reflect on it, to think about their place and the 257 00:14:26,590 --> 00:14:28,950 Kingdom and whether they really do understand the Kingdom or 258 00:14:28,950 --> 00:14:32,350 not. When the crowd heard this 259 00:14:32,350 --> 00:14:35,430 parable, they don't get to hear the interpretation that we get 260 00:14:35,430 --> 00:14:38,470 to hear in a few verses time. So they would not have 261 00:14:38,470 --> 00:14:41,190 necessarily known straight away what he meant. 262 00:14:41,350 --> 00:14:44,510 The point was, Jesus wants them to go away and think about the 263 00:14:44,510 --> 00:14:46,630 parable and think about what it means. 264 00:14:46,670 --> 00:14:50,960 And hopefully it will force them to not be neutral, it will force 265 00:14:50,960 --> 00:14:54,480 them to be challenged and to make a decisive response and 266 00:14:54,480 --> 00:14:58,880 commit to the Kingdom. So then we have the gap, verse 267 00:14:58,880 --> 00:15:02,880 10 to 17, which we look at Thursday in week 6IN week 16 268 00:15:02,880 --> 00:15:07,320 where the disciples asked Jesus about parables in general, Then 269 00:15:07,320 --> 00:15:10,000 we get to verse 18. So Jesus is still speaking to 270 00:15:10,000 --> 00:15:14,960 his disciples. He says remember he's just 271 00:15:14,960 --> 00:15:17,560 speaking to his 12 disciples. The crowds are gone now. 272 00:15:18,360 --> 00:15:20,520 You are to hear the parable of the sower. 273 00:15:21,160 --> 00:15:23,960 So Jesus perceives that they don't understand the parable and 274 00:15:23,960 --> 00:15:25,960 he wants to help them. He wants to make sure that they 275 00:15:25,960 --> 00:15:29,240 do understand the parable. He gives them the inside scoop 276 00:15:29,480 --> 00:15:31,160 and he tells them the meaning of the parable. 277 00:15:31,520 --> 00:15:34,600 And we're very thankful that he does that because now thanks to 278 00:15:34,600 --> 00:15:38,080 Matthew writing it down what he says, we get to hear what Jesus 279 00:15:38,080 --> 00:15:41,200 meant when he gave the parable, which we don't get to hear for 280 00:15:41,200 --> 00:15:44,380 most of the parables. So here's what he says is the 281 00:15:44,380 --> 00:15:45,700 meaning of the parable of the sower. 282 00:15:45,700 --> 00:15:48,420 Let's keep in mind this is Jesus own interpretation. 283 00:15:49,980 --> 00:15:52,420 In Marc's version we get a bit more. 284 00:15:52,420 --> 00:15:55,900 Here Jesus tells us a bit more about what each of the specific 285 00:15:55,900 --> 00:15:58,340 elements represents. So if you look at Mark chapter 4 286 00:15:58,340 --> 00:16:01,460 verses 1 to 20, Jesus specifically says to the 287 00:16:01,460 --> 00:16:05,700 apostles here the seed represents the word. 288 00:16:06,180 --> 00:16:11,340 And in fact, Matthew calls this the message of the Kingdom. 289 00:16:11,950 --> 00:16:14,270 So Matthew tells us this is specifically about the Kingdom 290 00:16:14,270 --> 00:16:17,310 of God, the information that Jesus is providing about the 291 00:16:17,310 --> 00:16:18,950 Kingdom of God. So that's the seed. 292 00:16:19,270 --> 00:16:22,830 The sower represents those spreading the message of the 293 00:16:22,830 --> 00:16:25,230 Kingdom of God. So that's what Mark's version 294 00:16:25,230 --> 00:16:26,790 tells us. So we get the seed and the 295 00:16:26,790 --> 00:16:30,350 sower. Now what might the roots mean? 296 00:16:30,390 --> 00:16:33,190 This is just my interpretation because Jesus doesn't tell us 297 00:16:33,190 --> 00:16:35,990 exactly what the roots are. But I think this is a decent 298 00:16:35,990 --> 00:16:39,310 interpretation. Roots, we can say, is something 299 00:16:39,310 --> 00:16:43,610 like intellectual understanding. So it's understanding the basics 300 00:16:43,610 --> 00:16:45,490 of the Kingdom of God and what it costs. 301 00:16:45,530 --> 00:16:48,410 I think that's a decent understanding of what the roots 302 00:16:48,410 --> 00:16:51,290 would be, understanding what the Kingdom of God is about and what 303 00:16:51,290 --> 00:16:55,010 it requires. And then fruit, I think we can 304 00:16:55,050 --> 00:16:58,130 reasonably say that means acting on the message of the Kingdom 305 00:16:58,130 --> 00:17:01,770 and producing good works. Fruit is often a metaphor that 306 00:17:01,770 --> 00:17:04,810 Jesus uses for good work. So I think we can safely assume 307 00:17:04,810 --> 00:17:08,250 that's what fruit is here, producing good works in response 308 00:17:08,250 --> 00:17:11,020 to the Kingdom. So I'll say those four elements 309 00:17:11,020 --> 00:17:13,540 again and then we'll try them on for size here. 310 00:17:13,540 --> 00:17:17,099 So seed represents the word, the message of the Kingdom of God. 311 00:17:17,500 --> 00:17:20,300 The sower represents those spreading the message of the 312 00:17:20,300 --> 00:17:23,579 Kingdom. Roots is understanding the 313 00:17:23,579 --> 00:17:27,300 Kingdom of God and what it costs, and fruit is acting on 314 00:17:27,300 --> 00:17:29,660 the message of the Kingdom and producing good works. 315 00:17:30,780 --> 00:17:34,940 So Jesus now tells the disciples what that means in terms of each 316 00:17:34,940 --> 00:17:38,300 of the four kinds of seed. Who do the four types of seeds 317 00:17:38,300 --> 00:17:41,170 represent? So firstly, the seed that fell 318 00:17:41,170 --> 00:17:45,250 on path basically represents, and this is what Jesus says 319 00:17:45,250 --> 00:17:48,010 here, it's the people who hear the word, the message of the 320 00:17:48,010 --> 00:17:54,010 Kingdom without understanding. And Mark's version actually says 321 00:17:54,010 --> 00:17:56,930 that Satan is involved here, that Satan immediately takes 322 00:17:56,930 --> 00:18:00,130 away the word from their heart, so they don't perceive it at 323 00:18:00,130 --> 00:18:02,730 all. What does that mean for Satan to 324 00:18:02,730 --> 00:18:05,730 take away the word from their heart? 325 00:18:05,730 --> 00:18:08,330 And Matthew's version calls it the Evil One as well. 326 00:18:09,040 --> 00:18:11,880 It probably means something like they hear the message of the 327 00:18:11,880 --> 00:18:16,160 Kingdom, but through fear or faulty human reasoning, they 328 00:18:16,160 --> 00:18:18,720 don't actually absorb the message of the Kingdom at all. 329 00:18:19,760 --> 00:18:22,760 Now that would certainly apply to the Pharisees who so 330 00:18:22,760 --> 00:18:25,280 misunderstand him that they think his message is not from 331 00:18:25,280 --> 00:18:27,360 God at all, so they dismiss his message. 332 00:18:28,340 --> 00:18:31,060 And it could also apply to the towns that Jesus has been 333 00:18:31,060 --> 00:18:33,980 condemning in earlier chapters. Remember, he's been condemning 334 00:18:34,180 --> 00:18:37,620 these local Galilee towns because they see his works, but 335 00:18:37,620 --> 00:18:40,140 they do not repent. So that would be a reasonable 336 00:18:40,140 --> 00:18:43,060 approximation of the seed that falls on the path. 337 00:18:43,540 --> 00:18:46,500 You could also possibly think about who this might apply to in 338 00:18:46,500 --> 00:18:50,540 society today. Certainly that would apply to 339 00:18:50,540 --> 00:18:54,580 people who hear the message of the Gospel that but then dismiss 340 00:18:54,580 --> 00:18:57,060 it straight away. That would be the seed falling 341 00:18:57,060 --> 00:19:01,350 on the path verse 20. This is those on rocky ground 342 00:19:01,350 --> 00:19:02,750 and this is a really interesting group. 343 00:19:04,350 --> 00:19:08,150 Jesus says the rocky ground soil are people who welcome the 344 00:19:08,150 --> 00:19:11,150 Kingdom with joy, but they have no root. 345 00:19:11,150 --> 00:19:14,710 So when the persecution arises because of the word, they fall 346 00:19:14,710 --> 00:19:17,150 away. Now the Greek word therefore 347 00:19:17,150 --> 00:19:21,590 fall away is scandalize. My so it has this idea of 348 00:19:21,870 --> 00:19:24,470 completely getting rid of the faith, falling away from it and 349 00:19:24,470 --> 00:19:28,150 causing scandal. So notice what it says about the 350 00:19:28,150 --> 00:19:30,870 people in the rocky ground. It's people who do well at the 351 00:19:30,870 --> 00:19:32,710 start. They receive the message of the 352 00:19:32,710 --> 00:19:36,430 Kingdom with joy, but they leave the Kingdom when they're 353 00:19:36,430 --> 00:19:40,030 persecuted for it. Notice it's being persecuted on 354 00:19:40,030 --> 00:19:43,510 account of the word, not just tough times in life in general. 355 00:19:43,510 --> 00:19:46,670 You'll often hear sermons that make it sound like the rocky 356 00:19:46,670 --> 00:19:49,470 ground is people who struggle with life, so they give up on 357 00:19:49,470 --> 00:19:51,270 Christianity. It's not quite right. 358 00:19:51,270 --> 00:19:55,470 It's people who give up because they're persecuted for being a 359 00:19:55,470 --> 00:19:57,390 Christian or for being a part of the Kingdom. 360 00:19:58,110 --> 00:20:00,910 And we know that there were many Christians in the time of Jesus 361 00:20:00,910 --> 00:20:03,830 who did this in the early years of the Jewish and Christian 362 00:20:03,830 --> 00:20:06,310 persecution. Many people did give up the 363 00:20:06,310 --> 00:20:10,510 faith when they were at the point of death so that they 364 00:20:10,510 --> 00:20:12,790 could survive. Many were persecuted for their 365 00:20:12,790 --> 00:20:15,910 own families and they gave in. So that would be people in the 366 00:20:15,910 --> 00:20:18,470 rocky ground. Notice they did produce some 367 00:20:18,470 --> 00:20:21,590 good fruit, but then they fall away. 368 00:20:23,390 --> 00:20:25,990 Verse 22 This is the thorny soil. 369 00:20:26,590 --> 00:20:29,270 It's people who hear the word, but the cares of the world, 370 00:20:29,270 --> 00:20:33,750 delight in riches and desire for other things enter in and choke 371 00:20:33,750 --> 00:20:35,830 the word and it proves unfruitful. 372 00:20:37,150 --> 00:20:40,230 What it actually says here in Greek is the deceit of riches. 373 00:20:40,550 --> 00:20:43,550 So there's strong echoes here of basically the world. 374 00:20:43,550 --> 00:20:45,990 The flesh and the devil is what gets to this group. 375 00:20:47,120 --> 00:20:49,800 So I think we can say these are people who understand the 376 00:20:49,800 --> 00:20:52,080 message of the Kingdom. Notice they're specifically said 377 00:20:52,080 --> 00:20:57,400 to have roots here. They do sort of take root in the 378 00:20:57,400 --> 00:21:00,000 soil, but other things choke them out. 379 00:21:00,320 --> 00:21:02,680 So they probably understand the Kingdom, but they're more 380 00:21:02,680 --> 00:21:04,520 interested in other earthly things. 381 00:21:04,520 --> 00:21:06,720 So in the end, they produce no fruit. 382 00:21:07,840 --> 00:21:10,000 Who would this apply to? Well, we know that it probably 383 00:21:10,000 --> 00:21:12,920 applies very well to the rich young man. 384 00:21:13,120 --> 00:21:15,920 We'll see him later in the Gospel of Matthew in chapter 19. 385 00:21:15,920 --> 00:21:18,880 Remember, the rich young man comes and says what else do I 386 00:21:18,880 --> 00:21:20,200 have to do to get into the Kingdom? 387 00:21:20,680 --> 00:21:23,160 Jesus says give up your riches and he won't do it. 388 00:21:24,640 --> 00:21:27,200 That would probably apply to a lot of society today as well, 389 00:21:27,200 --> 00:21:29,880 who perhaps have a basic understanding of what 390 00:21:29,880 --> 00:21:32,280 Christianity is on about, although certainly not everyone 391 00:21:32,280 --> 00:21:34,920 has this. But they're more interested in 392 00:21:34,920 --> 00:21:38,910 other things. And then lastly, verse 23 is the 393 00:21:38,910 --> 00:21:42,150 seed that falls on rich soil. So that's those who receive the 394 00:21:42,150 --> 00:21:45,590 word and understand it. He is the one who yields a 395 00:21:45,590 --> 00:21:49,790 harvest and produces thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold. 396 00:21:51,230 --> 00:21:53,990 So those who meditate on the message of the Kingdom and 397 00:21:53,990 --> 00:21:57,070 cooperate with God's grace. In other words, they act on 398 00:21:57,110 --> 00:21:59,470 Jesus commandments. That's who the rich soil is. 399 00:21:59,750 --> 00:22:04,100 These are the ones who advance in the Kingdom and to understand 400 00:22:04,100 --> 00:22:06,540 the meaning of the parables, which hopefully would be Jesus, 401 00:22:06,540 --> 00:22:10,060 apostles, and other people in the crowd as well, who go away 402 00:22:10,060 --> 00:22:12,780 and meditate on the mysteries of the Kingdom of God. 403 00:22:12,860 --> 00:22:16,740 Through God's grace he helps them produce fruit and progress 404 00:22:16,740 --> 00:22:20,380 further in the Kingdom. Notice though, that not everyone 405 00:22:20,380 --> 00:22:23,740 in the category produces the same amount of yield, so there's 406 00:22:23,740 --> 00:22:25,700 thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and a hundredfold. 407 00:22:25,700 --> 00:22:29,300 So the expectation is not that everyone in the Kingdom produces 408 00:22:29,300 --> 00:22:32,220 exactly the same kind of fruit, or even the same amount of 409 00:22:32,220 --> 00:22:35,000 fruit. And that's an important teaching 410 00:22:35,000 --> 00:22:38,080 for the Kingdom of God. It's possible to be in the 411 00:22:38,080 --> 00:22:42,040 Kingdom, but not to produce as much fruit as someone else, and 412 00:22:42,040 --> 00:22:45,560 therefore there's different levels of reward as well. 413 00:22:45,720 --> 00:22:47,560 And that's certainly part of Catholic teaching about 414 00:22:47,560 --> 00:22:52,640 cooperating with God's grace. So it's not the perfection is 415 00:22:52,640 --> 00:22:55,760 required to get into the Kingdom, but perfection is an 416 00:22:55,760 --> 00:22:58,200 element that helps people progress further once they're 417 00:22:58,200 --> 00:23:00,560 already in the Kingdom. We need to keep that in mind 418 00:23:00,560 --> 00:23:02,080 when we deal with Matthew's Gospel. 419 00:23:04,020 --> 00:23:07,340 Notice that Jesus has only told this interpretation to his 420 00:23:07,340 --> 00:23:09,540 apostles. The crowd does not get to hear 421 00:23:09,540 --> 00:23:12,380 these last few verses where he's interpreted the parable for 422 00:23:12,380 --> 00:23:14,380 them. So the crowd, if they're to 423 00:23:14,380 --> 00:23:16,820 understand the meaning of the parable, they have to go away 424 00:23:16,820 --> 00:23:20,020 and meditate on it. Now we're lucky because we're 425 00:23:20,020 --> 00:23:21,340 not in the crowd. We can. 426 00:23:21,380 --> 00:23:25,860 We have access to the interpretation that Jesus meant. 427 00:23:26,510 --> 00:23:29,390 We should still meditate on it, but we don't have to guess about 428 00:23:29,390 --> 00:23:31,510 the meaning of the interpretation, and we're quite 429 00:23:31,510 --> 00:23:35,750 privileged in that sense. But in the original context, 430 00:23:35,750 --> 00:23:39,710 those in the crowd who do meditate on it would be guided 431 00:23:39,710 --> 00:23:43,070 by God through His grace to find the meaning of the parable. 432 00:23:43,470 --> 00:23:45,590 But those in the crowd who couldn't be bothered going away 433 00:23:45,590 --> 00:23:48,550 and thinking about it would not have received any extra grace 434 00:23:48,550 --> 00:23:50,910 from God. They wouldn't find the meaning 435 00:23:50,910 --> 00:23:53,190 and in that sense they wouldn't progress further in the Kingdom. 436 00:23:53,620 --> 00:23:56,100 It's interesting, isn't it, the dynamics of the parable and what 437 00:23:56,100 --> 00:23:57,740 Jesus expects them to do with it. 438 00:23:58,020 --> 00:24:00,060 We often don't hear it praise in those terms. 439 00:24:01,260 --> 00:24:04,460 So in this sense, Jesus is able to impart information about the 440 00:24:04,460 --> 00:24:08,460 Kingdom of God only to those who are worthy of it and who really 441 00:24:08,620 --> 00:24:10,180 think about it and cooperate with God. 442 00:24:10,220 --> 00:24:14,420 Not to everyone. We're in a different position 443 00:24:14,840 --> 00:24:18,080 because the apostles and the gospel writers tell us directly 444 00:24:18,080 --> 00:24:21,320 what the meaning of many of the parables are, not all of them. 445 00:24:21,360 --> 00:24:24,320 And that's why we still need to do exegesis, because there's 446 00:24:24,320 --> 00:24:28,280 some parables that we can't get the full interpretation of that 447 00:24:28,280 --> 00:24:31,040 we can get close. But for the crowd, it's 448 00:24:31,040 --> 00:24:34,280 different. So overall, from the parable of 449 00:24:34,280 --> 00:24:38,240 the Sower Jesus message to his original audience, the crowd was 450 00:24:38,240 --> 00:24:40,800 for them to examine their response to the call of the 451 00:24:40,800 --> 00:24:44,840 Kingdom of God and honestly evaluate what obstacles might be 452 00:24:44,840 --> 00:24:47,880 hindering them from bearing the abundant harvest that God 453 00:24:47,880 --> 00:24:52,960 desires of them. Now let's turn to the catechism. 454 00:24:53,040 --> 00:24:55,200 Where do we see the parable of the solar referenced? 455 00:24:55,280 --> 00:24:57,040 Well, it's referenced in a couple of places. 456 00:24:57,120 --> 00:25:01,280 Paragraph 546 is about parables in general, and we'll look at 457 00:25:01,280 --> 00:25:04,760 this paragraph specifically when we look at the Thursday of week 458 00:25:04,760 --> 00:25:07,360 16. But in that paragraph it does 459 00:25:07,360 --> 00:25:11,800 mention good soil, bad soil as a metaphor that Jesus uses. 460 00:25:13,290 --> 00:25:15,410 Paragraph 29. There's a really interesting 461 00:25:15,410 --> 00:25:18,010 reference to it here, early in the Catechism, and this is in 462 00:25:18,010 --> 00:25:19,890 the section about desire for God. 463 00:25:20,890 --> 00:25:25,450 It says the intimate and vital bond of man to God can be 464 00:25:25,450 --> 00:25:29,210 forgotten, overlooked, or even explicitly rejected by man. 465 00:25:29,770 --> 00:25:32,090 Such attitudes can have different causes. 466 00:25:32,210 --> 00:25:33,970 Revolt against evil in the world. 467 00:25:34,290 --> 00:25:37,370 Religious ignorance or indifference, the cares and 468 00:25:37,370 --> 00:25:40,570 riches of this world. The scandal of bad example on 469 00:25:40,570 --> 00:25:43,840 the part of believers. Currents of thought hostile to 470 00:25:43,840 --> 00:25:46,920 religion. Finally that attitude of sinful 471 00:25:46,920 --> 00:25:50,520 man which makes him hide from God out of fear and flee his 472 00:25:50,520 --> 00:25:55,480 cool really important paragraph. And I actually think this early 473 00:25:55,480 --> 00:25:58,320 part of the Catechism is one of the most important but and it 474 00:25:58,320 --> 00:26:00,360 needs more attention. We should learn the early part 475 00:26:00,360 --> 00:26:03,240 of the Catechism because it tells us how we can come to know 476 00:26:03,240 --> 00:26:05,400 God and why some people don't come to know God. 477 00:26:05,880 --> 00:26:09,160 This paragraph in particular lists several reasons why people 478 00:26:09,400 --> 00:26:12,590 don't ever come to know God, even though they could if they 479 00:26:12,590 --> 00:26:16,350 thought about it, and at least one of the reasons as the cares 480 00:26:16,350 --> 00:26:20,590 and riches of this world, which is referenced directly in the 481 00:26:20,590 --> 00:26:23,350 parable of the Sower. So we'll leave it there for 482 00:26:23,350 --> 00:26:25,270 today. One of the most commonly known 483 00:26:25,270 --> 00:26:28,710 parables is the parable of the Sower that we've looked at 484 00:26:28,710 --> 00:26:30,550 today. But I'll I'm sure you agree that 485 00:26:30,550 --> 00:26:33,110 when you look at it with a bit more depth, there's a bit more 486 00:26:33,110 --> 00:26:35,350 going on here. If you think others would 487 00:26:35,350 --> 00:26:38,470 benefit from hearing this podcast, this episode where we 488 00:26:38,470 --> 00:26:40,630 dive into The Parable of the Sower, please share it with 489 00:26:40,630 --> 00:26:44,360 them, subscribe on YouTube, and if you believe the ministry is 490 00:26:44,360 --> 00:26:47,600 worth supporting, then please take a look at the Patreon page, 491 00:26:47,600 --> 00:26:50,680 which is in the show Notes Help us do more things with this 492 00:26:50,680 --> 00:26:54,480 podcast, help us spread the word more, get more resources into 493 00:26:54,480 --> 00:26:57,720 people's hands, and you can get access to exclusive bonus 494 00:26:57,720 --> 00:27:01,600 episodes as well through the Patreon page, so please check it 495 00:27:01,600 --> 00:27:03,960 out if you haven't already. Thanks. 496 00:27:03,960 --> 00:27:06,160 We'll continue in the Gospel of Matthew tomorrow.