Jesus’ Discourses

The Parables

Synopsis

In this learning unit, we will study Jesus’ parables. When Jesus taught this way he was just following a typical Jewish way of teaching that has its roots in the Old Testament. In ancient Israel, parables weren’t just used to teach profound spiritual truths to simple people, using familiar images taken from everyday life. On the contrary, they were used to respond to the evil deeds of Israel’s leaders. Parables test the heart of their hearers and can only be understood by humble people like David, who earnestly seek the truth. The arrogant don’t try to understand and just harden their hearts even more instead.

Jesus often added twists to his parables which made them even more difficult to understand. In this way, his parables not only draw us into the mystery of the kingdom by revealing some aspect of it, but they also conceal this reality through their unexpected twists.

Jesus often spoke of himself when he taught in parables. For example, he is the sower who came to sow the Word of God in everybody’s heart. Some will accept him but many will reject him. Nevertheless, we can be absolutely sure that his Word will produce a great harvest and God’s kingdom will come.

Learning Objectives

You will have successfully completed this learning unit when you can:

Explain why Jesus taught in parables.

Explain the purpose of the twist in many of Jesus’ parables.

Explain the meaning of the parables in chapter 4.

Teaching with Parables

Mark tells us that Jesus “taught them many things in parables” (Mk 4:2) and “With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it” (Mk 4:33). These two passages form the bookends of another inclusio, within which Mark groups Jesus’ parables. He makes it seem as if Jesus taught these parables in just one sitting, but this probably wasn’t the case, as he also tells us that this was his normal way of teaching. “He did not speak to them without a parable” (Mk 4:34).

Why did Jesus do this? It is often said that he taught in parables to present profound spiritual truths to simple people, using familiar examples from everyday life. Since many people in ancient Israel lived by cultivating the land, he compared the kingdom of God to seeds, plants, and harvesting. Others were fishermen, so he taught that “the kingdom of heaven is like a net which was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind” (Mt 13:47).

While there is some truth to this, it also masks a more complex reality. First of all, teaching in parables was not unique to Jesus. This was very common in ancient Israel, as we see in the Old Testament. The first parable in the Bible is that of the bramble-king, found in the Book of Judges. It was said in response to Abimelech, the Son of Gideon, who killed all his 70 brothers—except Jotham, the youngest, who managed to escape—to become king. In response to this crime, we read:

[Jotham] went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim, and cried aloud and said to them, “Listen to me, you men of Shechem, that God may listen to you. The trees once went forth to anoint a king over them; and they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’ But the olive tree said to them, ‘Shall I leave my fatness, by which gods and men are honored, and go to sway over the trees?’ And the trees said to the fig tree, ‘Come you, and reign over us.’ But the fig tree said to them, ‘Shall I leave my sweetness and my good fruit, and go to sway over the trees?’ And the trees said to the vine, ‘Come you, and reign over us.’ But the vine said to them, ‘Shall I leave my wine which cheers gods and men, and go to sway over the trees?’ Then all the trees said to the bramble, ‘Come you, and reign over us.’ And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If in good faith you are anointing me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’” (Jgs 9:7–15)

Probably the most famous of all Old Testament parables is the one given by the prophet Nathan to king David after he had committed adultery and murder.

And the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds; but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. And he brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his morsel, and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him. Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared it for the man who had come to him.” (2 Sm 12:1–4)

But we also find other parables in passages such as 2 Samuel 14:4–11, 1 Kings 20:35–42, and 2 Kings 14:8–9. The word “parable” (parabolē) is used in the Greek version of the Old Testament to translate the Hebrew word māshāl, which can refer to a variety of literary forms such as axioms, proverbs, riddles, similitudes, and allegories. But it most often refers to an extended comparison in which an unknown truth is explained by comparing it to some aspect of experience that is known. This is what makes Jesus’ parables his most memorable form of teaching.

When we study the context of the parables in the Old Testament, we discover that they were given in response to the evil actions of Israel’s leaders. That is, the prophets confronted evil leadership through parables. Jesus responds in the same way to the misunderstanding, unbelief, hardness, and rejection he is suffering. This is the immediate context for his parables. He is reacting to the evil leadership of the Pharisees and Herodians—who seek to kill him (see Mk 3:6), the scribes—who accuse him of being possessed by Beelzebul (see Mk 3:22), and even his family and friends—who think that “he is beside himself” (Mk 3:21).

If Jesus had spoken openly, his enemies would have sought to get rid of him sooner than they did. He, therefore, had to speak in a way that both revealed and concealed his message. This is why he did not speak to them without a parable. Parables test the heart of their hearers and can only be understood by people like David, who earnestly and humbly seek the truth. Those who did this understood the message and repented of their sins, becoming Jesus’ disciple. The others remained on the outside and hardened their hearts even more, following the example of the pharaoh in the Book of Exodus. That is why Jesus says, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables” (Mk 4:11).

Parables work like stained glass windows. Their beauty can only be seen by those inside a church building. For those standing outside, they look dark and plain.

(Photo by Stephanie LeBlanc on Unsplash)

(Cropped photo by Jan Caradec on Flickr - CC BY-SA 2.0)

Another reason why Jesus’ parables are difficult to understand is because he often added some unexpected element or twist that contradicted the people’s everyday experience. Jesus used this technique to get their attention by shocking them with something unusual.

In conclusion, Jesus’ parables not only draw us into the mystery of the kingdom by revealing some aspect of it, they also conceal this reality through their unexpected twists.

The Parable of the Sower

Again he began to teach beside the sea. And a very large crowd gathered about him, so that he got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole crowd was beside the sea on the land. And he taught them many things in parables, and in his teaching he said to them: “Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell along the path, and the birds came and devoured it. Other seed fell on rocky ground, where it had not much soil, and immediately it sprang up, since it had no depth of soil; and when the sun rose it was scorched, and since it had no root it withered away. Other seed fell among thorns and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no grain. And other seeds fell into good soil and brought forth grain, growing up and increasing and yielding thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” And he said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” (Mk 4:1–9)

“He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea.” It is believed that Jesus taught this parable from a boat in a small bay on the Sea of Galilee located halfway between the towns of Tabgha and Capernaum. This semicircular bay has excellent acoustics because the land around it slopes down, creating the shape of a Roman theater. The people sitting there could have seen Jesus, and the acoustics were so good, that up to 7000 people could have heard him speaking.

A more literal translation of the original Greek text would be: “He got into a boat and sat in the sea.” That is, Mark tells us that Jesus sat in the sea, not in a boat. This expression is strange. Jesus was obviously in a boat, but Mark may have expressed it this way to draw our attention to Psalm 29.

The voice of the Lord is upon the waters;

the God of glory thunders,

the Lord, upon many waters.

The voice of the Lord is powerful,

the voice of the Lord is full of majesty…

The Lord sits enthroned over the flood;

the Lord sits enthroned as king for ever. (Ps 29:3–4,10)

We might wonder why a farmer would sow seeds on a path, in rocky ground, or among thorns but this wasn’t a problem for those who heard Jesus. Today, farmers plough their fields before sowing, but we know from rabbinical sources that back then, they did the opposite. That is, they would first sow the seeds and then plough the land. Therefore, the situations Jesus describes are plausible. A farmer might sow seed on a path, if he intended to plow it afterwards; or, when ploughing, he might discover that the ground was rocky. And weeds would have grown afterwards together with the crop.

What is unexpected in this parable is the size of the harvest. Despite three of the four parts of the seed going to waste, the harvest yielded “thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” This would have been an incredible harvest by standards back then.

The Explanation of the Parable

And when he was alone, those who were about him with the twelve asked him concerning the parables… And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown; when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word which is sown in them. And these in like manner are the ones sown upon rocky ground, who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy; and they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. And others are the ones sown among thorns; they are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world, and the delight in riches, and the desire for other things, enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. But those that were sown upon the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” (Mk 4:10,13–20)

The apostles don’t understand the parable, so they ask Jesus to explain it to them. He points out that the kingdom of God is similar to what happens when farming. Seed is scattered, some of it grows into plants, which then produce their fruit or grain. The act of sowing corresponds to preaching the Word of God— “The sower sows the word” (4:14). Jesus is, therefore, describing himself. He has come to sow the Word of God in the hearts of everybody, not just his disciples but also into the hardened hearts of those who will reject him—the Pharisees, Herodians, the scribes, and his family and friends. Despite the fact that many will reject him, we can be absolutely sure that his Word will produce a great harvest and God’s kingdom will come.

In verse 4:3 Jesus said, “A sower went out to sow.” A literal translation of the Greek would be “one came out sowing.” This expression is awkward because we normally don’t speak this way. That is why translators “correct” it by changing “came out” to “went out.” However, this correction conceals a possible link to verse 1:38, where Jesus says, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also; for that is why I came out.”

The Parable of the Lamp

And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a bushel, or under a bed, and not on a stand? For there is nothing hid, except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret, except to come to light. If any man has ears to hear, let him hear.” And he said to them, “Take heed what you hear; the measure you give will be the measure you get, and still more will be given you. For to him who has will more be given; and from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away.” (Mk 4:21–25)

Once again, verse 4:21 is not accurately translated. The Greek word Mark used (erchetai) doesn’t mean “brought” but “coming.” And, when speaking of the lamp, he used the definite rather than the indefinite article. So, a more literal translation would be: “Does the lamp come to be put under a bushel, or under a bed, and not on a stand?” Note how, as with verse 4:3, Mark uses the verb “come”, which again is strange because we are not accustomed to speaking of lamps coming. This could be another hint that Jesus is referring to himself in this parable. That is, he is saying that he has come to bring light. This matches what we read in John’s Gospel: “I am the light of the world” (Jn 8:12) and in the psalms: “Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps 119:105).

The parable of the Growing Seed

And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed upon the ground, and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he knows not how. The earth produces of itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” (Mk 4:26–29)

This parable is unique to Mark. We see that the one who scatters the seed and harvests the grain is the same person. The message of this parable is that the seed contains in itself the power to grow and produce its fruit. All the farmer has to do is wait till the harvest. The Bible often uses the image of a harvest as a fixed metaphor for judgment.

I will sit to judge

all the nations round about.

Put in the sickle,

for the harvest is ripe. (Jl 4:12–13)

Then I looked, and lo, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one like a son of man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand. And another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat upon the cloud, “Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” So he who sat upon the cloud swung his sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped. (Rv 14:14–16)

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” (Mk 4:30–32)

In this parable, Jesus compares the kingdom of God to a tree and speaks of birds nesting in it and resting in its shade. He was not the first to use this imagery.

The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly,

the cedars of Lebanon which he planted.

In them the birds build their nests. (Ps 104:16–17)

Thus says the Lord God: “I myself will take a sprig from the lofty top of the cedar, and will set it out; I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I myself will plant it upon a high and lofty mountain; on the mountain height of Israel will I plant it, that it may bring forth boughs and bear fruit, and become a noble cedar; and under it will dwell all kinds of beasts; in the shade of its branches birds of every sort will nest.” (Ez 17:22–23)

Jesus must have got the idea for this parable from the Old Testament. This confirms what we mentioned earlier in this course. Almost everything Jesus says or does is related to the Old Testament in some way. In the passage from Ezekiel quoted above, God used a cedar tree to speak of both the kingdom of Israel and the messianic kingdom. This is because it is one of the most noble trees that exists. It is strong, durable, and fragrant; it is very tall and spreads its branches wide so that even the eagle perches and makes its nest there; and it’s wood is of such quality, that it was widely used in building temples, palaces, chariots, and ships. The cedar is mentioned over 70 times in the Bible, often as an image of things such as a powerful nation, the flourishing of the righteous, and the glory of Christ.

Behold, I will liken you [the Pharaoh king of Egypt] to a cedar in Lebanon,

with fair branches and forest shade,

and of great height,

its top among the clouds. (Ez 31:3)

The righteous flourish like the palm tree,

and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. (Ps 92:12)

His legs are alabaster columns,

set upon bases of gold.

His appearance is like Lebanon,

choice as the cedars. (Sg 5:15)

The twist in this parable is that Jesus compares the kingdom of God to a mustard tree instead of a cedar. Scholars debate the type of mustard tree Jesus was referring to. Many think it was the black mustard (Brassica nigra). This change would have been quite shocking to his listeners because a mustard tree is not at all like a cedar. Technically, it isn’t even a tree but rather a very big herb that can grow to be at most three meters (10 feet) tall. Cedars, on the other hand, can reach up to forty meters (131 feet).

By introducing this twist into an otherwise well-known image, Jesus is telling us that the kingdom of God on Earth won’t look like anything we expect. We often imagine that the Church should be perfect, holy, and beautiful, like a cedar tree. But the truth is that it looks more like a humble mustard tree. It is an enigmatic reality, filled with both saints and sinners, yet we can be sure that it will grow in a mysterious way and produce the harvest that God expects from it.

Assignments

Add Jesus’ parables to our map of the gospel. You can use the attached files for this in Excel or PDF formats (click on icons to download files).

Choose one of the following parables in the Old Testament and explain how it was used to confront leadership in Israel.
- 2 Sm 14:4–11
- 1 Kgs 20:38–42
- 2 Kgs 14:8–9

Why does Jesus teach in parables?

Describe and explain the meaning of the twist in the parables of the sower and the mustard seed.

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