There are two different sections of JST to pay attention to in the parable of the wheat and tares. One is part of the parable
itself, and the other is in the interpretation given by Jesus.
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KJV Matthew 13:30
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JST Matthew 13:30
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Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time
of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and
bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.
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Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time
of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together
first the wheat into my barn; and the tares are bound in bundles to be burned.
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The major change that takes place here is the order of
gathering is completely reversed. Instead of first gathering the tares, the
wheat is gathered first.
Now, why would that be? I think it may be because there is far less chance of false
positives of the wheat is gathered first rather than the tares first. Earlier in the parable, the householder
would not let his servants gather the tares up because of concern that they’d
root up wheat too (false positives).
There may be just as much danger as there would be at the beginning of
rooting up wheat if the harvest takes the wicked first .
In life, if the Lord wants the righteous gathered, He sends
prophets and apostles and missionaries and priesthood leaders with the message,
and the righteous are gathered while the tares disregard the message. This isn’t just true about the gathering
into the church, but in any future instructions given by church leadership.
Next is the JST of v39-44:
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KJV Matt 13:39-42
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JST Matt. 13:39-44
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39 The
enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world;
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39 The enemy
that sowed them is the devil; The harvest is
the end of the world, or the
destruction of the wicked.
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and
the reapers are the angels.
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40 The reapers are
the angels,
or
the messengers sent of heaven.
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40 As
therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire;
so
shall it be in the end of this world.
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41 As, therefore,
the tares are gathered and burned in the fire,
so shall it be in the end
of this world, or the destruction
of the wicked.
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41 The
Son of man shall send forth his angels,
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42 For in that day, before the Son of man shall come, he shall send
forth his angels and messengers of
heaven.
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and they shall gather out of his
kingdom all things that offend,
and them which do iniquity;
42 And shall cast them into a
furnace of fire:
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43 And they shall
gather out of his kingdom all things that offend,
and them which do
iniquity,
and shall cast them out among the wicked; and
there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
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there shall be wailing and gnashing of
teeth.
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44 For the world shall be burned with fire.
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What do we learn from these
changes?
1.
The end of the
world and the destruction of the wicked are synonymous.
2.
Messengers of
heaven are sent as well as angels, so the messengers are mortals. (These would have to be duly ordained church
leaders sent.)
3.
The removal of
the wicked from Christ’s kingdom will happen before Christ comes again. This implies that it can happen through
the disciplinary process, if those who do iniquity are not willing to repent.
4.
Those that do
iniquity are cast out into the world, rather than into a furnace of fire. Then there is the warning that the
wicked world will be burned with fire, so this is something that may not happen
immediately when the iniquitous are cast out, but by and by.
How does this parable help
us today? I think it helps us
realize the importance of repenting quickly and removing from our lives all
things that offend before we have to be told. Our place in the Lord’s kingdom and our safety when the Lord
comes again are at stake.
It also helps us realize
that the removal of those who do iniquity from the kingdom of God can be
happening all along, not at some indefinite period just before the second
coming.
Finally, it is yet another reminder of how important it is to follow the counsel of the prophets and apostles and our church leaders.
2 comments:
"he removal of the wicked from Christ’s kingdom will happen before Christ comes again. This implies that it can happen through the disciplinary process, if those who do iniquity are not willing to repent."
Or perhaps additionally the wicked will remove themselves from the church.
Good point. Thanks for stopping by.
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