Let’s start by playing a game of word association. I’ll give you the phrase, “Jesus’ teachings,” and you need to say (or think) the first word that comes to your mind. For most of us, that word would be “parable.” This week’s chapter focuses on six parables (one of which Jesus actually explains), with a biographical vignette at the end of the text.
Teaching through the use of parables was a common rabbinic practice, first found in the Bible in the book of Judges, where one of Gideon’s sons, Jotham, used a parable to point toward the failings of his brother, Abimelek. At its most basic, a parable is a story designed to illustrate a point that required those listening to dig a little deeper than the surface level to gain insight. The use of parables allowed Jesus to explain to those who were willing to listen what the kingdom of heaven is like, while preventing these truths from being discerned by those whose ears and hearts were closed. This phenomenon is described by the words God spoke to Isaiah:
‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
Make the heart of this people calloused;
make their ears dull
and close their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed (Isaiah 6:9-10).
Jesus clarified the meaning of the Parables of the Sower and of the Weeds, though interestingly enough it took a while for the disciples to gather the nerve to ask for the latter explanation. Both of these explanations remind us that not all people will be able to hear and understand His words about the Kingdom of God, which can be a difficult fact to bear for those of us who wish to see all brought into the Kingdom.
Following His telling of the parables, Jesus returned to his hometown, where he taught in the synagogue. While his teaching sparked amazement among those who heard it, it also raised questions as to where this man (who they all might have remembered as a boy) gained his understanding.