Rebranding the Parable of the Sower: Reflections on Matthew 13

July 03, 2011 by Alyce McKenzie

Continued from Page 1

The success of our sowing depends on the quality of the soil on which it lands. Except that, in Matthew it sounds like even with good soil, some individuals bear more fruit than others (13:8). The final verse says, "Let anyone with ears listen." To me that says, everybody has the ability and potential to be good soil. Some ancient texts add the words "to hear," which changes the meaning a bit. "Let anyone with ears to hear listen." To me that says, not everybody uses those abilities and that potential to be good soil.

Mark's version, written in a time of persecution, focuses on comforting the vulnerable young community. The emphasis is on the miraculous harvest of the seed despite adverse circumstances. Seeds are a good metaphor for encouraging a vulnerable community. They speak of a mysterious reality whose growth occurs without our instigation and, often, even our knowledge.

Matthew, written several decades later to an established, but divided community, highlights the need for the individual to bear a harvest from the seed that falls on its soil. That subtle change Matthew makes to Mark's version is in keeping with the larger theological agenda of each gospel. Mark, writing in a time of persecution by Domitian or Nero, emphasizes that, though the vulnerable community is not in control of its own destiny, God brings forth a harvest.

Matthew, written later in the first century to a mixed community of Jewish and Gentile Christians, emphasizes the need of each individual to not rest on their religious heritage as Jews or on their freedom from the law as Gentile Christians. Rather, each person needs to be a doer of the word and not only a hearer.

It is interesting that, in the explanation of the parable of the sower in Mark, all the references are in the plural ("they are those who . . ."), whereas in Matthew they are singular ("this is the person who . . ."). This conveys Matthew's focus on the varieties of individual responses. Some people have ears, but refuse to use them to hear.

The Parables of the "Secret" Savior
Chapter 13 of Matthew's gospel is the beginning of the "parables discourse." It comes at a critical point in Matthew's narrative. In chapter 12, Jesus has been under assault by his opponents. The Pharisees apparently are not good soil for his teachings to land on. They object when Jesus plucks grain and heals a man with a withered hand on the Sabbath (12:1-14). When he cures a demoniac who was blind and mute (12:22) they accuse him of deriving his exorcizing power from Beelzebub, the ruler of demons (12:22ff). The Pharisees have ears but do not hear. Over against this opposition, the parables discourse affirms Jesus' divine identity. He both teaches and embodies the mystery of the kingdom of heaven, (13:11), a mystery "hidden from the foundation of the world" (13:35) but now revealed at this dawning of the final age.

The Purposely Confusing Parables (?)
The parable of the sower, in both Matthew and Mark, is followed by a passage (Mt. 13:10; Mk. 4:10) in which Jesus turns from addressing large crowds to speak to a more intimate group of his disciples (13:10). He talks about the strategy of speaking in parables (Mt. 13:10-17; Mk. 4:10-12), then offers an allegorical interpretation of the parable of the sower (Mt. 13:18-23; Mk. 4:13-20).

Matthew 13:10-15 is a confusing passage. It sounds like a clear statement that Jesus uses parables intentionally so that he can reach some and not others. The quotation in verse 12 is from Isaiah 6:9-10, the story of Isaiah's call to ministry. Just after he accepts God's call, Isaiah is told that his ministry will not be well received. In fact, it seems as if his calling is to preach to a faithless people. My interpretation is that "in order that" in verse 12 is better rendered "with the result that." A typical construction in Hebrew is to use a command to express a result. Jesus is not saying he uses parables deliberately so some will be excluded. He is saying that some will see and hear, but will not, at a deeper level, understand and take his words to heart. (Thurston, 51)

Verses 10-15 are not a statement of divine intention that some not hear. They are a description of the mixed reception of any prophet's life and teachings, whether Isaiah's, whose words these verses cite, or Jesus'. The "secrets of the kingdom of God" referred to in verse 11 are the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ, a real-life parable of the victory of God's kingdom over circumstances in which death and failure seem to have had the last word.

The parables discourse in Matthew 13 explains why, despite Jesus' manifest identity as the Messiah, his opponents have ears but do not hear, do not respond positively to him, or to the community who proclaims him. Their inability to penetrate to the meaning of Jesus and his mission is the result of their obstinate disbelief and dullness of heart, as Isaiah had prophesied (13:10-15). They do not open their minds and hearts to the parables, but rather, allow them to compound their misunderstandings. By contrast with Jesus' opponents, the disciples in Matthew are the blessed recipients of the mystery of the kingdom, something the prophets and just ones of old longed to see 13:16-17. (Senior 159-160)

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