Hey everybody! Thank you for joining me in daily Bible reading as we seek to glorify Jesus, know Him more, and interpret the truth of His Word.
If this is your first time going through the Bible, I am incredibly excited to have you here. If this is your 5000th time, I am humbled that you are here and hope you grow in your relationship with Jesus along with me. May we all seek to know Him more and apply what we learn to further our mission of spreading the gospel. If you missed a day and want to catch up, visit the archives page HERE! But there is no shame if you start today! Day 149, Matthew 13:8-9, 23 — Parable of the Sower Matthew 13:8-9, 23 (NASB1995) “8 And others fell on the good soil and *yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. 9 He who has ears, let him hear.” “23 And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.” Historical Context Jesus is teaching a parable about a sower. Like fishing, sowing was one of the more popular industries in ancient Israel, as many Jews labored in the agriculturally rich lands of Galilee. A sower plants or scatters seeds in hopes the seeds find good soil to root and grow. They would commonly scatter the seed by hand from a bag slung over the shoulder or let the seed trickle from holes in a sack carried by an animal to cover more ground. Jesus uses this as an example to illustrate a spiritual truth about gospel sharing. Because Matthew orders this chapter sporadically, we will jump around to get the full context of this parable. We read about the sower in vs. 3-9 and receive a clear explanation of its meaning in vs. 18-23. Instead of eisegeting our own interpretation from just one set of verses separately, we will exegete both sets of verses together to draw out the correct interpretation and application. We have learned what a parable is and discussed three places scattered seeds fall. A parable, or parabolḗ in Greek, is an illustrative teaching with allegorical elements. Most parables use an example or story from everyday life to illuminate a spiritual idea. Throughout the gospels, the meaning of a parable is usually hidden and meant to be so, but Jesus provides a clear explanation in this one. Discussion The first place we see the sowers’ seeds fall is beside the road (13:4) which represents a hard-hearted person who lacks understanding or closes themselves off because of disinterest, distraction, or desensitization from Satan (13:19). The seed of the gospel cannot root itself and grow because it never breaks the surface of one’s heart. The second place is on rocky areas (13:5-6) where the seeds cannot properly root. While there is soil to grow, it is too shallow to develop foundational roots and remain established. This rocky-placed person hears the gospel and joyfully receives it (13:20) but their faith cannot be sustained amid trials and persecution (13:21) because of their lack of rootedness. Yesterday, we discussed a sowers’ seeds falling among thorns and weeds (13:7). In this case, the seeds root in rich soil but become choked and smothered by the lack of light and air drawn away by weeds and thorns. The plants cannot survive in this setting and become unfruitful. In this way, one’s faith becomes suffocated leading to unfruitfulness because of failed obedience. If we focus on the things of this world or chase wealth, then our faith is susceptible to being choked out and makes us unfruitful. The seeds that fall among the thorns or weeds represent those who receive the gospel but allow worldly concerns such as wealth and worry to take priority over their time. Instead of wholly committing to Jesus and becoming fruitful for the kingdom, they are unfruitful and unfaithful. Today, we discuss the final place seeds' land. Jesus says, “8 And others fell on the good soil and yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty. 9 He who has ears, let him hear.” The good soil Jesus speaks of here is clear of thorns and weeds and has plenty of sunlight and moisture to germinate the seeds into full maturity. There are no rocky places or issues with depth for the seeds to root and the birds cannot come and steal them away. The goodness of this soil stupendously juxtaposes the other three soils, which remain unrooted, moisture-less, choked by parasitic weeds, and devoid of vitality.[1] Over time, the good-soiled plants replicate and spread other seedlings throughout the area producing thirty, sixty, or even a hundredfold harvest, which are enormously good harvests from Galilean soil. The average harvest yield varies between five and fifteenfold depending on “variations in climate, location, season, and quality of soil.”[2] The meaning of the numbers shows that “ten seeds were harvested for every seed sown,” so the numbers Jesus says here are extremely good yields.[3] These numbers were not impossible but most likely miraculous for the average Galilean farmer in Jesus’ time. One instance where we see a hundredfold harvest is found in Genesis 26:12. It says, “Now Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold. And the LORD blessed him.” Jesus explains this, saying, “23 And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.” Unlike the previous three people who were hardened and deceived to the truth, faithless in the face of persecution, and more focused on the worries of life and the pursuit of wealth, this person hears the gospel and writes it in his heart. They are wholly rooted in Christ. Satan’s deception cannot steal away their faith, nor can the difficulties of trials and tribulations shake them. They prioritize the truth of Christ and His eternal promises over the worries of the world and fully submit to Christ instead of money as their master. Through their obedience and humility, they retain the seed that was rooted in their hearts and become fruitful. Jesus says these people not only bear fruit but multiply it a hundred, sixty, and thirtyfold. These committed disciples lead others to Christ and help them to receive and understand the seed of the gospel through their fruitful works, teaching, and holy living. They cannot be choked out by the thorns of life or distracted by the temptations of wealth and worry. This does not mean they are devoid of such worries or temptations but that they do not allow these temporal things to take the place of Christ’s eternal peace and glory or make them fruitless. They are not overcome but victorious, faithful, and fruitful. They produce fruit in keeping with repentance and do not fall for the lies of the enemy. Certainly, life can still be challenging but nothing can uproot the deep-rootedness of Christ in their hearts. We will discuss Jesus’ explanation of hidden parables tomorrow. Application It was sort of relieving to get to the good soil after three days of reading about those who are not rooted in Christ. It does provide a productive reflection of our own lives when we put all four together. We all fit into one of the four categories of soil and hopefully, this passage convicts the hearts of those who need to fully submit to Christ. Whether our entire lives do not represent the LORD or just segments have not yet been submitted, the parable of the sower is a message for us all. Recently, I have found myself dealing with varying thorns and weeds that the enemy is attempting to use to choke out my faith. Thankfully, my life is completely submitted to Jesus, and I daily remind myself to rest on the truth of His word and focus on His eternal promises instead of my temporal struggles. Life can quickly take a turn for the seemingly worst, but those who are deeply rooted in Jesus cannot be uprooted. Since this application is a time of reflection, I want you to think about what you prioritize in your life. Do these priorities take precedence over obedience to God? Do you find them choking out your potential fruitfulness? Have you noticed them making you unfruitful? What are the thorns and weeds of worry that suffocate you? Have you talked to God about them and submitted them to His Lordship? Or are you attempting to do it all on your own? Let us come boldly to the throne of grace so God can help us in our time of need. Whether we need to repent of ongoing sin or change our perspective of our temporal struggles and submit them to Christ, we all have something or somewhere we can allow the seeds of Christ to grow in our lives. We should seek to be fruitful for the kingdom, not allow the world to make us fruitless. May we praise, worship, honor, and glorify Jesus every day in all that we do while continually pursuing righteousness, holiness, and forgiveness as He forgave us. Looking Ahead Thank you for joining today’s daily Bible reading! Next, we read Matthew 13:10-13. I hope you join me! I have made commenting available, so please feel free to discuss the reading and ask questions. If you do not want to discuss publicly, you can reach out to me privately. We are on this journey together. References [1] Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown, “Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary.” [2] Doug O’Donnell, “New International Greek Testament Commentary.” [3] Craig Keener, “IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, Second Edition.”
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