Strange Scripture: Reflections On The Five Parables In Matthew 13

"Like" the Patheos Progressive Christian Page on Facebook to receive today's best commentary on Progressive Christian issues. Lectionary Reflections on Matthew 13 July 24, 2011 In my book The Parables for Today , I tell of the time I was teaching a Couples' Sunday school class on the parables in a local church. I began by saying, "The parables seem like ordinary stories from first-century Palestinian village life. They seem realistic. But then, as we get into them, there is something strange, something not true to life as we know it, something out of whack, off-kilter. Can you think of something in your experience that is realistic and yet strange?" One of the women in the class raised her hand and said, "My name is Alma. This is my husband Ken. I am realistic, and Ken is strange" (McKenzie, 22-3). That got a laugh. But it's actually a pretty good analogy for Jesus' parables. Each one is an odd marriage of realistic scene and strange, incongruous, out-of-the-ordinary detail. That's a long way of saying that there is something funky about each of the parables of Jesus. Biblical scholar C.H. Dodd's definition of a parable, dating back to 1935, is still the best attempt to list the properties of Jesus' parables. He defined a parable as "a metaphor or simile drawn from nature or common life, arresting the hearer by its vividness or strangeness, and leaving the mind in sufficient doubt about its precise application to tease it into active thought" (Dodd, 5). Between Jesus' death around 30 CE and the writing of the four gospels from 70 (Mark) to 85-90 (Matthew) to 90-95 (John), Jesus' parables were told and retold by people with added details according to the context in which the parable was being recounted. First century interpreters of Jesus' parables used allegory to connect features of his parables with their own political, religious, and congregational contexts. Several of the parables seem to have allegorical explanations attached to them. Examples include the Parable of the Sower (Mark 4:3-8; Matthew 13:3b-8; Luke 8:5-8a) and the Parable of the Weeds among the wheat (Mt. 13:24-30; 36-43) (McKenzie, 19). Today's lectionary text consists of four brief, rapid-fire parables from the 13 th chapter of Matthew's gospel: mustard seed, yeast, treasure, and pearl. Some of the parables in Matthew are extended narratives (Unmerciful Servant; Vineyard Laborers). By contrast, these four are brief similes that compare a natural phenomenon with the kingdom of heaven. The parable of the mustard seed also appears in Mark (4:30-32) and Luke (13:19). The parable of the leaven appears in Luke 13:20. As for the treasure, the pearl (and the fishnet), they appear in the Gospel of Thomas, an early Christian non-canonical sayings collection. But Matthew is the only canonical gospel in which they appear. Commentators point out that the first two parables (mustard seed, leaven) are addressed to the crowds and speak of the actions of God. The second two (treasure, pearl) are addressed to the disciples and speak of the quality of human response to God's actions. A rule of thumb of parable interpretation is this: identify what is strange about the parable. It is your window into the kingdom of God (or the kingdom of heaven as Matthew prefers to call it). So let's catch some glimpses of the kingdom of God by asking: "What's strange about this parable?" The Mustard Seed In both the mustard seed and the leaven, what is strange is the sharp contrast between the initial and the final stages of growth. The emphasis is on God's action in the world which is almost imperceptible, but which yields results that belie its unimpressive appearance. The mustard seed, though it is the tiniest of seeds, grows to host the birds of the air so that they find a home in its branches. The leaven, though hidden in the dough, is capable of leavening the whole loaf so that many are fed. These two parables, according to Douglas Hare, are meant to inspire faith in God as active in the tiny movement initiated by Jesus. "The twin parables challenge the hearer to leave behind the pedestrian, pragmatic everyday world that treats God as irrelevant and enter into a new world in which God is the primary reality" (Hare, 156). Both parables underscore that God's action is real and will, in the fullness of time, come to full fruition. The mustard seed is an unimpressive metaphor for the kingdom of God. The detail that the birds of the air will nest in its branches is an extravagant overstatement. That detail would better fit a large tree. And, in fact, in the Old Testament, nations with power and influence are described as huge trees in which birds take shelter. The phrase "the birds of the air can make nests in its shade (or branches)" is a clue that connects this parable with several Old Testament passages where trees are used as grand, dramatic metaphors. Israel is depicted as a noble cedar in Ezekiel 17:22-24. "In the shade of its branches will nest winged creatures of every kind." (17:23b). Assyria (Ezekiel 31:6) and Babylonia (Daniel 4:12) are both portrayed using the metaphor of a cedar tree, lofty and proud, in whose branches the birds of the air nested, but whose pride will lead to their downfall. The righteous person who trusts in God is compared to a flourishing tree in Psalms 1:3, 92:13-15, and Jeremiah 17:7-8. Parables, rather than being simple stories with one point, are complex scenarios that can evoke all kinds of connections, not only with daily life, but also with other texts. So the humble mustard see that becomes a shrub could make us think of God's care for us like a flourishing tree, or it could turn our minds to the fact that the mustard shrub is not going to be like the mighty trees or empires of former times, which grew through military power and violence. Though small and insignificant, the mustard seed is not to be underestimated. Its power to nurture and sustain far exceeds expectations. Mustard seeds are not just a phenomenon of the past; they are sprouting all around us. Jesus himself is a mustard seed, discounted and discarded, entombed in darkness, sprouting to new life, not only for himself, but for all of us who make our nests in his branches. The strange element here is the widespread, extravagant effect of the mustard seed/shrub compared to its being dismissed and discounted by the world. A cedar of Lebanon, surely, would be a better metaphor for the kingdom of God. Or maybe not. The Leaven (Yeast) Matthew's version of the parable of the leaven (as does Luke's) contains the surprising note that the woman hid the leaven in three measures of wheat flour. This is a huge batch of dough made from approximately 50 pounds of flour! This would be enough bread for over 100 people. We are probably to see here an allusion to Gen 18:6 where Abraham instructs Sarah to prepare cakes from three measures of flour for his heavenly visitors. The quantity of flour in both passages suggests a festive occasion. Perhaps we are to think of the final outcome of God's hidden activity as the Messianic Banquet at which the heavenly Lord Jesus will dine with his people. The fact that human eyes fail to perceive it does not change the fact that God is at work (Hare, 157). The strange thing about the use of leaven as a positive symbol for the kingdom of heaven is that it was widely regarded as an agent of corruption (fermentation) in the ancient world. The "strange" aspect of parables is often their paradoxical nature. They present as good something commonly regarded as bad (leaven as metaphor for kingdom of God, a "Good" Samaritan) or they present as bad something we regard as good. An example would be the negative portrayal of the Pharisee in Luke 18:10-14a. First century Jewish audiences would have expected righteous behavior from a Pharisee, not from a tax collector. Another example is the Vineyard Laborers. We would interpret the vineyard owner's behavior as unfair in paying everyone the same wage regardless of how long they worked. The parable portrays it positively as the ethic of the kingdom of God. So, to summarize the strangeness in these first two parables that deal with God's action in the world: God is at work in people, events, situations (mustard seeds) we regard as insignificant and God's actions have results wildly beyond our expectations. God is at work in people, events, situations (leaven) widely regarded as subversive of the status quo and counter to standards of worldly success. Now we turn to two parables that point toward our response to this persistent activity of God. The Treasure and the Pearl The strange element in the parable of the treasure is the behavior of the seeker. Why would someone give up everything to have access to a treasure that, by the laws of the day, he could never possess? Likewise, the parable of the pearl—if you sell everything you have for it, what do you have except it? Then again, what do you need besides it? The second pair of parables stresses the human response to what God is doing. Like buried treasure, God's activity is hidden and must be discovered. Like a pearl of immense value, it must be sought in order to be found. Paradoxically the kingdom, since it is God's doing, is a gift as well as a search. The emphasis in these two parables is not on the need for perseverance, but on the overwhelming, extravagant response to finding what has been sought. In each case the finder sells all he possesses in order to have access to what he has found. Our response to the gracious gift of participation in God's rule must be total. Those whose eyes have been opened to see what God is doing in Jesus must commit themselves wholeheartedly in faith and obedience.(Hare, 158). Our lectionary text for this week contains a fifth parable, the parable of the net. It serves as an exclamation point to the first four. The parable of the net is an allegory, a story in which every element stands for something beyond the story. (Hare 156) As in the earlier parable of the weeds and the wheat, Matthew here is expressing his concern at the mixed state of the church. The intention of the parable is not to assure good Christians of their predestined salvation as good fish, but to warn them that they must persevere in doing what Jesus teaches. Not lip service but living faith is required of Jesus' followers (Hare 156). So, four strange parables, the first two about what God is doing in offering the gift of the kingdom (mustard seed, leaven), the second two, about how we are to seek and accept that gift (treasure, pearl). They are followed by an allegorical parable (13:47-50) that serves as an exclamation point to all four of them. Its message seems to be: better recognize the gift and work at accepting it or face the consequences. This reminds me of the graduation ceremony in which the President of the University stood on the stage, handing out diplomas as the large group of graduates paraded by, one by one. If you were close enough, you would have heard him say to each graduate, "Congratulations" (as he handed them their diploma) and then "Keep moving" (as he shook their hand). He meant it literally—the event was on a schedule. But it's got a good metaphorical meaning, too. "Congratulations, and keep moving." Matthew is saying the same thing as he hands his community (and us) these five parables from chapter 13. Sources Consulted C.H. Dodd, Parables of the Kingdom , 1935, 2 nd ed., rev. (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1961). Douglas R. A. Hare, The Interpretation Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew Alyce M. McKenzie, The Parables for Today

Strange Scripture: Reflections on the Five Parables in Matthew 13