Parables – 19th August 2016

“I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”(Matthew 13:35).

A parable is a comparison of two things, often done through a story that has two meanings. Jesus Christ did much of his teaching in parables. These tales of familiar characters and activities were a popular way for ancient rabbis to hold an audience's attention while illustrating an important moral point. Parables appear in both the Old and New Testaments but are more easily recognizable in the ministry of Jesus. After many rejected him as Messiah, Jesus turned to parables, explaining to his disciples in Matthew 13:10-17 that those who sought God would get the deeper meaning, while the truth would be hidden from unbelievers. We can learn from Matthew 13:13-14, This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving”.

Jesus was speaking a language that all Jews could understand, but with an emphasis on attitudes rather than the outward appearances that the Pharisees focused on. We can learn that Jesus said: “Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” (John 7:24). Parables also have an emotional impact that makes them more meaningful and memorable to those who are soft of heart. At the same time, the parables of Jesus often times remained a mystery to those with a hardened heart because parables require the listeners to be self-critical and put themselves in the appropriate place in the story. The result was that the Pharisees would “be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving” (Isaiah 6:9). We can also learn Matthew 13:35 “I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things hidden since the creation of the world.”

By using parables, the teaching of Jesus remains timeless despite most changes in culture, time, and technology. For example, these parables convey commonly misunderstood concepts like gentleness, concern, pride and others… But when we read the parables that Jesus used, the underlying concept can be understood by us, even though the story is over two thousand years old. In Jewish culture character traits are often described in relation to objects that are universally recognized like the regularity of the sun or the refreshing nature of rain. This also explains why poetry is a common mode of language used in the Bible. In the case of parables specifically, the elements mentioned in them are usually representations of something else, just as in a metaphor. However, an overemphasis on a particular detail in a parable tends to lead to interpretive errors. When reading Jesus’ parables, repetitions, patterns, or changes will often help us in identifying when we should focus on a particular detail.

By identifying things in common in the parables, we can gain context to help us understand the significance of otherwise subtle elements in the story. As the old saying “Proper context covers a multitude of interpretive errors.” Therefore we can learn of many teachings that can be derived through Jesus’ parables which should be read and studied in a broader context beyond the storyline, which will broaden our understanding of what Jesus wanted to convey to His followers then, as well as Christians in the world today.