Home	Our Hope
Bible Study		February 14, 2016
Secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven

Introduction

From the beginning of his ministry Jesus talks about the Kingdom of Heaven.

From then on, Yeshua began to preach and to say, "Return to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven has come near." (Matthew 4:17)

In this lesson we will look at the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus taught. The lesson comes from Matthew 13 which is well known for the parable of the sower, which is taught everywhere and often. Instead we will look at all that Jesus taught about the Kingdom of Heaven in that chapter.

Jesus also talked about another kingdom which he calls "My Kingdom."

Yeshua said to him, "My Kingdom is not from this world; if my Kingdom were of this world, my servants would be fighting that I would not have been delivered up to the Judeans, but now my Kingdom is not from here." (John 18:36)

This phrase, "My Kingdom", also shows up in this chapter and we will look at it as well.

Lesson (Matthew 13:1-52)

1

¹ But that day Yeshua went out from the house and he sat down by the seaside. ² And great crowds were assembled to him so that he embarked, seating himself in a ship, and all the crowds were standing on the beach by the sea.

1a. Where in Israel is this happening?

In the Bible we only ever hear of Jesus sailing on the Sea of Galilee. The Dead Sea was too salty for fishing and we don't hear of anyone fishing the Mediterranean. Therefore this must be in the area of the Sea of Galilee. A house is also mentioned. That must be the house where Jesus lived with his family in Capernaum.

1b. Why did Jesus go out on a boat?

There are two reasons. So that Jesus would not have people close in front of him blocking the view and sound for others, he wanted to be a ways away from them. But crowds tend to push forward and this would have driven him into the Sea. But as soon as the people at the front started to get their feet wet they would start pushing back on the crowd. So being in a boat allowed Jesus some distance from the crowd and the crowd kept themselves from pushing forward.

Jesus also probably chose this spot so people could hear him. In the morning, sound from people on a lake travels very well to shore. The slope of the shore makes it possible for many people to see and hear him. It is likely that at other times Jesus used the curves of the hills around the Galilee as amphitheaters so people could see and hear.

2

³ And he was speaking much with them in parables and he said, "Behold, a sower went out to sow. ⁴ But as he sowed,

some seed fell on the side of the road and a bird came and ate it.
⁵ And others fell on the rock where there was not much soil, and within the hour it sprouted because there was no depth of soil. ⁶ But when the sun rose, it became hot, and because there were no roots, it dried up.
⁷ And others fell among the thorns and the thorns came up and choked it.
⁸ And others fell in the good soil and it yielded fruit, some a hundredfold and some 60 fold and some 30 fold.

⁹ Whoever has an ear that hears, let him hear."

I've used bullet points above to mark the different kinds of soils Jesus talks about: packed pathway, rocky, thorny, and good.

2a. Generally, what are the people on the beach supposed to learn from this parable?

Who may enter the Kingdom of Heaven, how they enter, and what they do. That is, by hearing the Word of God, receiving it and being productive.

That's what they were supposed to get from it. We know, though, that many were not understanding. Jesus talks about this problem later in the chapter.

2b. The words "ear that hears" in verse 9 also appear in other places. What does Jesus mean by that?

There is more to what I'm saying than it appears. Think about it.

2c. When Jesus says "hundredfold, 60 fold and 30 fold", what does he mean?

In this picture of a head of grain you can see what he means. The wheat seed that is planted grows roots and then a little head pushes its way above the surface. That grows into a straight stalk that is 24 to 48 inches long. Then finally, the head begins to appear. Each individual husk in the picture contains a seed. So when Jesus says "30 fold", or "30 times" in other translations, he says there are 30 seeds in the head for the one that was planted in the ground.

In modern countries in our time, the ground is not tilled (broken up) and seed is not thrown by hand any more. Instead seeds are injected into the ground, often with some fertilizer. Therefore seed does not fall on bad soil.

Jesus explains this parable in section 8.

3

¹⁰ And his disciples approached and they were saying to him, "Why are you speaking with them in parables?"

3a. Why are the disciples asking him this?

They don't understand what Jesus is saying and so they think that no one else understands either. Also, Jesus spoke with some people clearly, not in parables.

4

¹¹ But he answered and said to them: "It has been given to you to know the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but to them it has not been given.

Some translations say "mysteries of the kingdom of Heaven" instead. That's just translators having different opinions on which English word is the best choice. There isn't any real difference. Jesus is referring to the characteristics of his kingdom that were unknown (mysteries or secrets) at the time.

4a. What is Jesus teaching them?

Jesus is teaching the truths about the coming Kingdom of Heaven that had been unknown until then.

4b. What does he mean by "given to you"?

It was determined that these secrets would be explained clearly to the disciples so that they would understand them. They would not have to work to understand them and they would not have to hear with their hearts as the rest of Israel would have to do to understand.

5

¹² For to one who has it, it will be given, and it will be increased. ¹³ And from him who has it not, will be taken even that which he has, therefore I am speaking to them in parables because they who see do not see, and those who hear neither hear nor understand.

5a. Why is he speaking in parables?

The parable tells it all. The secrets were for the people who were the good soil and who would receive the Word and grow and be productive. The others would not understand or could not hold onto what they received.

6

¹⁴ And the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled in them, which says, 'Hearing you will hear, and you will not understand, and seeing you will see and you will not know. ¹⁵ For the heart of this people has become dense, and they have hardly heard with their ears and their eyes they have shut, lest they would see with their eyes and they would hear with their ears and they would understand in their hearts and they would be converted and I would heal them.'

6a. Why is Jesus mentioning Isaiah here?

Jesus is telling them that prophecy is being fulfilled in their hearing and more than that, that he is the fulfillment of prophecy, and that other prophecies have more to say about him.

6b. What does Isaiah mean by dense hearts?

Exactly what Jesus described in the parable - hard hearts, hearts with little soil, and hearts choked out by weeds.

6c. Isaiah talks about healing. What does he mean by that?

Spiritual healing. The people had slipped away from God and their hearts had become dense. Jesus wanted to heal that.

7

¹⁶ But you have blessings to your eyes, for they are seeing, and to your ears, for they are hearing. ¹⁷ For I say to you that many Prophets and righteous ones have yearned to see the things that you are seeing and they did not see them, and to hear the things that you are hearing, and they did not hear them.

7a. What does he mean by "blessings to your eyes and ears"?

Many prophets and other people had desired to hear and see these things about the Messiah that were foretold, but they were not blessed in that way. Jesus' disciples, however, were blessed to see and hear.

7b. What does he mean by "prophets and righteous ones"?

People from the Old Testament prior to Jesus' time. The prophets received God's words about Jesus. They certainly searched those words but might not have understood all of them but they looked forward to the fulfillment of what they understood. They also told other people those words and the righteous one's of them also looked forward to the fulfillment.

8

In this section Jesus explains the parable from section 2.

¹⁸ But hear the parable of the seed.

¹⁹ Everyone who hears the word of the Kingdom and does not understand, the evil one comes into him and snatches the word that was sown in his heart; this is that which was sown upon the roadside.
²⁰ But that which was sown upon the rock is the one who hears the word, and immediately with joy he receives it. ²¹ But there are no roots in him, but he is temporal, and when there is distress or persecution because of the word, immediately he falls apart.
²² That which was sown among the thorns is the one who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deception of wealth choke the word, and that one is fruitless.
²³ But that which was sown on the good soil is he who hears my word and understands and he yields fruit, and produces some by the hundreds and some by 60's and some by 30's."

8a. Jesus has referred to the Kingdom of Heaven twice in this chapter so far and will mention it many more times. What is the Kingdom of Heaven?

Note that this is not a Kingdom in Heaven but the Kingdom of Heaven. At this time the Kingdom of Heaven is in a man and is a man who hears the Word, receives it, grows and becomes productive. And it is all people who have done the same.

9

²⁴ He told them another parable and he said, "The Kingdom of Heaven is likened to the man who sowed good seed in his field. ²⁵ And while men slept his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat. ²⁶ But when the seed sprouted it produced fruit; then the tares also appeared. ²⁷ And the servants of the lord of the house approached and said to him, 'Our Lord, did you not sow good seed in your field? From where are the tares in it?' ²⁸ But he said to them, 'An enemy has done this'; his servants said to him, 'Do you want us to go select them out?' ²⁹ But he said to them, 'When you collect the tares, would you not uproot the wheat with them?' ³⁰ 'Let both grow together until the harvest and in the time of the harvest, I shall say to the reapers, "Select out the tares and bind them into bundles, but gather the wheat to my grainery."'"

9a. What are the meanings of the field, good seed (wheat), enemy, tares, servants, harvest, reapers, and grainery? What does this tell us about the Kingdom of Heaven?

Field - the universe, Good seed (wheat) - God's people, Enemy - Satan, Tares - evil people, Servants - angels, Harvest - Second Coming, Reapers - angels, Grainery - New Earth.

God allows the children of the evil one to share the world with the children of Kingdom of Heaven. It hurt the children of the Kingdom to pull out the children of the evil one. A time will come, however, when they will be separated to different destinies.

9b. The parable says the good seed would be hurt if the tares were removed. Why does God allow the "tares" to continue with his people? How would it harm them if the tares were removed?

1. We can bring the gospel message to them and perhaps convert them from being tares. 2. We learn about the evilness of evil through them. Their evils teach, strengthen and perfect the children of the Kingdom.

Jesus explains this parable in section 13.

10

³¹ He told another parable to them and said, "The Kingdom of Heaven is likened to a grain of mustard seed which a man had taken and sown in his field. ³² And this is the smallest of all seeds, but whenever it has grown, it is greatest of all small herbs and it becomes a tree so that the birds of the sky may come settle in its branches."

10a. What does this tell us about the Kingdom of Heaven?

The Kingdom of Heaven is going to start very small, with Jesus, and will grow until it becomes a huge kingdom.

In prophecy, a tree often symbolizes a person or kingdom that has grown and provides fruit for others and is generally a blessing to others.

We see this in the prophecy about Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 4. Verse 12 says "Its leaves were beautiful, its fruit abundant, and on it was food for all. Under it the wild animals found shelter, and the birds lived in its branches; from it every creature was fed."

11

³³ He told them another parable: "The Kingdom of Heaven is likened to yeast which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal until all of it had fermented."

11a. What does this very short parable tell us about the Kingdom of Heaven?

The Kingdom of Heaven spreads throughout a man until he is completely converted and changed.

We know he is speaking about a man in this parable because of the reference to 3 measures of meal. Why not say 2 or 4 measures or why give a number at all? The number 3 is a reference to the triune nature of man as he was made in the triune nature of God.

12

³⁴ Yeshua spoke all these things in parables to the crowds and without a parable he was not speaking with them ³⁵ so that the thing that was spoken by the Prophet would be fulfilled which says, "I shall open my mouth in parables and I shall declare things hidden from before the foundation of the world."

12a. We saw Jesus quote Isaiah previously and Jesus' purpose in doing so. Here, Matthew quotes from Isaiah, why?

Again this shows that Matthew understands and is showing that Jesus was the fulfillment of prophecy.

When Isaiah speaks of Jesus saying "I shall declare things hidden from before the foundation of the world" he is echoing what Jesus said earlier and the title of this lesson, revealing "the Secrets (Mysteries) of the Kingdom of Heaven." So, something like 700 years before Jesus, Isaiah is saying what Jesus will say and do and also what we are studying now.

13

In this section Jesus explains the parable from section 9.

³⁶ Then Yeshua left the crowds and came to the house and his disciples came to him and they were saying to him, "Explain to us that parable of the tares and of the field." ³⁷ But he answered and said to them, "He who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. ³⁸ The field is the world but the good seed is the children of the Kingdom and the tares are the children of the Evil One. ³⁹ The enemy who sowed them is Satan, but the harvest is the end of the world and the reapers are the Angels.

⁴⁰ Therefore, just as the tares are gathered and burn in the fire, so it will be in the end of this world. ⁴¹ The Son of Man will send his angels and they will select from his Kingdom all of those stumbling blocks and all of those evil doers. ⁴² And they will cast them into (the essence / a furnace) of fire; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. ⁴³ Then the righteous will shine as the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. Whoever has an ear that will hear, let him hear.

13a. What does "(the essence / a furnace)" mean?

Jesus is using two different meanings of a word at the same time. One meaning is "a furnace" which makes sense for the burning of weeds (tares). The other meaning is "essence of fire" which has a more spiritual quality to it which is appropriate for spirits.

13b. Again we see that phrase "an ear that will hear". What does it mean?

There is more to this than meets the eye

13c. If the Kingdom of Heaven is within those who receive the word into their good soil, what does Jesus mean by "select from his Kingdom all of those [people]?"

The Kingdom of Heaven could have no evil people in it, so we know that Jesus is talking about another kingdom. This agrees with John 18:36 in the introduction, "now my Kingdom is not from here". Jesus is hinting that there would be a time when his kingdom would be from here.

We also know from other books of the Bible that Jesus will return and setup a kingdom on earth, his kingdom. The evil ones will be separated from the good ones and the good ones will help rule the earth

13d. We see the phrase "weeping and gnashing of teeth" and we'll see it again. What does that mean and tell us?

This phrase is used to indicate ongoing sadness and regret. The evil people will experience this.

13e. Jesus mixes together various end-times events here. What does he mean by:

Angels selecting?

He is referring to the events described in the Bible and commonly called the Second Coming and the Rapture. At that time Jesus returns with his angels who are sent out to collect his people to him.
Cast into (the essence / a furnace) of fire?

He is referring to an event in the Bible called the Great White Throne judgment, but this does not occur until 1000 years after the Second Coming and Rapture

13f. Who are the "stumbling blocks" Jesus speaks of above?

They are people who interfere with the growth of the kingdom. They include false teachers and preachers, false prophets, and similar. What did Jesus say about little children and the millstone?

And Yeshua called a boy and stood him in their midst. ³ And he said, "Truly I say to you, unless you will be converted and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. ⁴ Whoever therefore humbles himself like this boy, he will be greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. ⁵ And whoever will receive one such as this boy, in my name, receives me. ⁶ And everyone who commits an offense against one of these little ones who believe in me, it were profitable for him that a donkey's millstone would be hung around his neck and he be sunk in the depths of the sea. ⁷ Woe to the world because of offenses, for it is necessary that offenses will come, but woe to the man by whom the offenses will come." (Matthew 18:2-7)

Notice what Jesus has done in his explanation of the parable. The end of the parable is "I shall say to the reapers, 'Select out the tares and bind them into bundles, but gather the wheat to my grainery.'". Starting in verse 40, Jesus goes beyond that to explain, in detail, what happens to the bundles and what happens to the wheat, which he calls the righteous.

Notice also, in this explanation he says again "an ear that hears" meaning there is something deeper to what he is saying. Even in the explanation it isn't all explained.

14

⁴⁴ Again the Kingdom of Heaven is likened to treasure that was hidden in a field which a man found and hid, and for his joy he went selling everything that he had and he bought that field.

14a. What does this parable teach us about the Kingdom of Heaven?

We will receive far more than we give, even if we give everything we have.

15

⁴⁵ But again the Kingdom of Heaven is likened to the merchant man who was searching for precious pearls. ⁴⁶ But when he found a certain obviously valuable pearl, he went and sold everything he had and bought it.

15a. What does this parable teach us about the Kingdom of Heaven?

The Kingdom of Heaven is worth more than anything in the world.

We have two ask why Jesus would give two parables that have the same meaning. In fact, they have different meanings. In the first, the man "stumbles" across it; in the second he is searching.

The key comes from "I appeared to those who did not seek me and I was found by those who did not ask for me" (Romans 10:20 quoting Isaiah 65:1). Yes, it's Isaiah again and he is talking about the kingdom being opened to Gentiles. Therefore the first parable is about Gentiles coming into the kingdom. The second is about those who seek after God finding him.

16

To understand the next parable we need to understand the kind of net fishing that was done at that time. A net was spread out in the water, often between two boats. It forms a bag like shape in the water as the boats sail along. Fish go into the bag and the flow of water keeps them in (more or less). After a period of time, the bag is pulled up, as shown in the picture.

⁴⁷ Again the Kingdom of Heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea, and it collected from every kind. ⁴⁸ But when it was full they brought it up to the seashore, and they sat and selected out and they placed the good in vessels and the bad they threw out. ⁴⁹ Thus it will be in the end of the world. The Angels will go forth and they will separate the wicked from among the righteous. ⁵⁰ And they will cast them into the essence of fire; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

16a. What are the meanings of sea, every kind of fish, net full, vessels, and threw out. What does this parable teach us about the Kingdom of Heaven?

Sea - the world, Every fish - all people, Net - time, Net full - time is up, Vessels - new bodies, Threw out - Lake of Fire.

This is a complicated parable. The net spoken of here is catching all people throughout time. There comes a time however when the net is full, there will be no more people to catch. From other books of the Bible we know this time comes when the Messiah returns.

But there are some important details. It says "placed the good in vessels" this is a reference to the event described in the Bible called the Resurrection. This happens when the Messiah returns. The faithful dead are resurrected (come back to life) into new bodies (vessels) and the bodies of the living faithful are transformed into new bodies. We already know what happens to the unfaithful who remain.

17

⁵¹ Yeshua said to them, "Have you understood all these things?" They were saying to him, "Yes, Our Lord."

⁵² He said to them, "And because of this, every scribe who is instructed for the Kingdom of Heaven is like the man, a house owner, who brings from his treasure new and old things."

17a. What does this parable teach us about the people of the Kingdom of Heaven?

When you have company come to visit you, do you not share with them the things you have that will help them? That is what Jesus is referring to here. So the message is "One who is learned in the Kingdom of God will bring out treasures to share with other people"

17b. What does he mean by new and old things?

This can only mean treasures from the Old Covenant (Old Testament) and treasures from the New Covenant (New Testament).

18

⁵³ And it was that when Yeshua had finished these parables, he departed from there.

Conclusion

These are the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven that Jesus taught in this chapter. The number(s) with each one are the section numbers in this study where it is covered.

The Kingdom of Heaven is the word of the kingdom planted in the heart of man that takes root and grows and produces more of the word of the kingdom (2, 8).
The Kingdom of Heaven begins very small and grows into a large tree and is a blessing to others (good works) (10).
The Kingdom of Heaven spreads in a man through every part of him and changes him (11).
The Kingdom of Heaven, as a people, share this world with the children of the evil one but at the end of time the two will be separated. The children of the evil one will be cast into the essence of fire where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. The righteous will shine as the sun (9, 13).
The Kingdom of Heaven will be found by some who stumble upon it and recognize its great value. It is worth far more than you can give, even if you give everything you have (14).
Those who seek the Kingdom of Heaven will find it. It is worth far more than you can give, even if you give everything you have (15).
The Kingdom of Heaven is offered to all peoples, everyone. A time will come when that will end. The good will be placed in vessels (rapture, new bodies, 1 Corinthians 15:35-44) and the bad will be cast into the essence of fire (16).
A man who is schooled in the Kingdom of Heaven brings forth treasures from the new and old covenants (17).

In these parables Jesus has told everything about the Kingdom of Heaven, from who enters and how, to the effects over time, to the end - the Second Coming, Resurrection, Rapture, and Great White Throne judgment.

All of this was given to Israel in parables and therefore only to those whose soil (heart) was good and could receive it. All the parables were explained to the disciples.

For us, some of the parables are given with explanations. For the rest we must seek - not so differently from the Jews of Jesus time. Sometimes what we've learned from other places in the Bible can help us understand the remaining parables.

Notes

This lesson can be found at http://ourhope.site/2016-02-14%20SecretsOfTheKingdom/SOTK.html. If you are setup to scan QR codes, this code will take you there.

Introduction

Lesson (Matthew 13:1-52)

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Conclusion

Notes

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