Therefore hear the parable of the sower

 

"Therefore hear the parable of the sower:  When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  This is he who received seed by the wayside.  But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while.  For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.  Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.  But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."

 

- Matthew 13:18-23 

 

As we began chapter 13 of St. Matthew's Gospel, Jesus began a new kind of preaching.  He gave the parable of the Sower to the crowds.  (See Tuesday's reading.)  Yesterday, we read that following His giving of this parable, the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?"  He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.  For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.  Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.  And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:  'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; for the hearts of this people have grown dull.  Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.'  But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it."

 

 "Therefore hear the parable of the sower:  When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  This is he who received seed by the wayside.  But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while.  For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.  Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.  But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."  In today's reading, Jesus explains in detail to the disciples the meaning of the parable of the Sower.  

 

Jesus explains: "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  This is he who received seed by the wayside."  In yesterday's commentary, we discussed the "two ways" found in the teachings of both Judaism and Christianity, and how Christ's words exemplified aspects of this understanding.  Here, He seems to give us hints regarding His words (in yesterday's reading) teaching about the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, and those who have been given to understand, contrasted with those who haven't.  He said, "For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."  Here He gives us an insight into how such wisdom works:  when people are exposed to the teachings of Christ regarding the kingdom, and they do not understand it, the wicked one comes and snatches away the word that was sown in the heart.  Without our capacity for spiritual sight and hearing, the "wicked one," the devil, is able to leave us empty, to take away the good word we've been given.  Our lack of understanding, in this picture that Jesus gives us, leaves us vulnerable to the effects of evil and its active presence in our world.  Thus, we lose "even what we have" when we fail to grasp Christ's words.  We might presume, or so it seems, regarding Christ's statement to the disciples in yesterday's reading, that God is at work in this process.  He said to the disciples that "it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given."  Who is the Giver?  Why is something given to one, and not to another?  We must presume, therefore, that this giving and understanding (or receiving) is a kind of two-way street or effect, a synergistic reality that involves both God and the reception of the human being.  We don't know why something is given to one and not the other.  Equally mysterious, do we know why one understands and another does not?  We should recall that the words of Isaiah quoted by Jesus indicate a hardness of heart, a dullness created by habits of not caring, not paying attention, not seeking to understand.    Repentance, also, plays a strong hand in such matters of understanding, because repentance indicates a turning toward God, not simply regret or recognition of past mistakes. In repentance, we seek to place ourselves on the road toward Christ.  And so, we go into the parable of the Sower, and the word sown by Him.  How does that word take root within us?  What kind of soil do we need to provide for it?  And how do we get that, prepare it, fertilize it, make good things grow?  How do we take that word to heart, consider it precious, nurture it?  Do we treasure the word He offers, and what it means for us to be capable of living it?  We have to truly desire it.  This is the spiritual life the Word offers to us, as He sows His gospel of the kingdom of heaven.  Let us seek to produce the good crops He asks of us, a hundredfold, maybe sixty, even thirty.