The disciples want to know what Jesus meant by the parable of the weeds. Wisely, they flat out ask Him. Jesus’ response tells us this parable is much deeper than we might have thought. He begins by giving us the keys to its interpretation; “He answered, “The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.””
The keys tell us how the parable works as metaphor. But they do not tell us what it means as a whole. Yet even the very difficult parts of Scripture are meant to be understood. The Scripture is not given to us that we might be confused or distressed or merely speculate on its full meaning. The Scripture is given to humankind so that we might apply it. God means for us to understand Him, and when we ask about His Word, He makes understanding possible.
In this case, the enigma of the parable requires divine interpretation. To the disciples’ blessing (and to ours), Jesus continues with His explanation; “As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.”
From His opening message about repentance, Jesus has had the coming kingdom of heaven and the end of the ages in mind (Matt 4:17, 5:3-12). He has spoken openly about the kingdom of heaven and how it is dawning on creation (Matt 5:19-20). He has told people to anticipate it (Matt 6:19-20). He has warned people to get ready for it (Matt 7:13-14). He has told them how to get ready for it (Matt 7:24-27). He has trained them to participate in it (Matt 10:7-42). He pronounced woes on cities that did not repent (Matt 11:21-24) so that they might be ready for it. He has appealed to people’s common sense about it (Matt 11:28-30). He has spoken openly about the demonic kingdom currently in place (Matt 12:26-32) and prophesied about the consequences of the heavenly kingdom’s appearing (Matt 12:41-42).
It is no surprise then, that when Jesus begins teaching in parables He continues to speak about the coming kingdom. To those who’d rather just get on with their lives and not be bothered with such, He speaks only riddles. But to those who truly want to know God and prepare for the coming kingdom, He gives understanding.
That is because God is continuing to bring history to a conclusion. Every single day we draw another 24hours closer to that inevitable conclusion. For the willfully ignorant, that conclusion will be a terrifying and horrific beginning to untold suffering. For the obedient, that conclusion will be a wonderful and glorious beginning to untold blessing.
Which it is for us is entirely our own choice.
We, as humanity, chose our fate when we went against God’s will that first time and every time since.
John D. Barry and Rebecca Van Noord
APPLICATION: Intentionality
To be Christlike is to likewise pursue the repentance of all around us.