A Lamp Unto My Feet Bible Study Website
Matthew 13:47-58
Lesson #35
PARABLES OF THE KINGDOM – Part 4
- Memory verse: Act 10:42
- Read Mat 13:47-50
- Parable of the Good and Bad Fish (Mat 13:47-50)
- This parable is similar to the parable of the wheat and the tares but there are some differences. (Mat 13:24-30; 36-43)
- What are the similarities between these 2 parables?
- Both show the good and the bad side by side.
- Both are separated at the “end of the age“
- Both describe the angels separating the good from the bad,
- Both describe the doom of the wicked in fire where there is “weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth.”
- What does the net represent?
- The parable was spoken by the Sea of Galilee where the disciples were familiar with fishing.
- The net was a large, hauling net of great length, weighted by lead so as to drag the bottom of the sea for the purposes of gathering a large mass of fish at one time.
- It represents the wooing of the Holy Spirit by the the proclamation and presentation of the gospel. (John 16:14)
- What is the gospel?
- The word gospel means = good news.
- The “good news” that Jesus Christ is God come to this earth as a human being to carry our sins on the cross.
- By that we do not have to pay the penalty for sin, and therefore have eternal life.
- This parable is similar to the parable of the wheat and the tares but there are some differences. (Mat 13:24-30; 36-43)
The Use of the Word Gospel in Scripture
| The Gospel | Explanation | Scripture |
| =1= “The gospel of Jesus Christ” | The Eternal Purpose of God:
It includes the virgin birth The incarnation of God come in the flesh The death and resurrection of Christ |
Mar 1:1 |
| =2= “The gospel of the grace of God” | The good news of salvation by grace and not by works. | Act 20:24 |
| =3= “The gospel of God” | God’s love poured out through Jesus Christ who was promised by the prophets, and who fulfilled the prophecies. | Rom 1:1-6 |
| =4= “The gospel of peace” | Reconciliation of man and God through the blood of Jesus Christ. | Rom 10:15 |
| =5= “The gospel of your salvation” | The believer is made a new creature in Christ to become the possession of God sealed by the Holy Spirit. | Eph 1:13 |
| =6= “ The gospel of the kingdom” | The kingdom of God in the present embodied in Jesus Christ and subsequently in the believer.
The kingdom of God to come on earth. |
Mat 4:23
Mat 24:14 |
| =7= “The everlasting gospel” | Judgment and eternal separation of men into one kingdom or the other. | Rev 14:6-7
Rom 2:16 |
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- The word “gather” (48)
- We are told in the parable that the net did not gather all the fish in the sea, but gathered only some of every kind.
- The word gather in the Bible is applied to both good and evil.
- Notice that the depths of society are plumbed by the net.
- God is no respecter of persons. (Acts 10:34-35)
- What does that mean and what are the repercussions?
- God knows the receptivity of a heart. He will make sure that anyone who has a heart toward God will hear the gospel message.
- Out of those who hear the message, some will accept and some will reject.
- As in the parable of the sower and the seed, some of the seed will be eaten up by the birds, some will be burnt up by the sun.
- What does the sea (lake) represent? The sea is the whole mass of fallen humanity. (Isa 57:20-21)
- Who are the fisherman?
- The disciples, who were called to be fishers of men.
- Christ and the Holy Spirit do not save men alone, the gospel has been entrusted to men to speak it.
- Notice the word “they” in verse 48. This is the first time we have “they” used in the parables.
- God trusts us with the gospel.
- What do the good fish represent? True believers
- What do the bad fish represent?
- People like Cain, Esau, Judas for example.
- The unsaved who have heard the gospel and rejected it.
- We have discussed previously the angels who separate the good from the bad in the final judgment.
- This is the same as the parable of the wheat and the tares.
- What is the “fiery furnace” into which the bad fish are thrown?
- The phrase “cast out” or “cast away” is often used in scripture to refer to a state of condemnation.
- It refers to eternity in the lake of fire. (Rev 20:11-15)
- What do you think is meant by “weeping and gnashing of teeth“? The lake of fire is not annihilation but eternal torment.
- The central truth of the parable of the wheat and the tares:
- There is the true and the counterfeit, good and evil, in the world today that produces either believers in Jesus Christ or unbelievers.
- It will be so until the final judgment when believers and unbelievers will be separated.
- Believers to eternal life and unbelievers to eternal death.
- Central truth of the parable of the good and bad fish:
- Everyone who has a heart for God has an opportunity to hear the gospel.
- Each has an opportunity to be a good fish or a bad fish.
- The good are saved for eternal life, the bad spend eternity in the lake of fire.
- The parable of the good fish and bad fish and the churches of Revelation
- The church at Laodicea (Rev 3:14-22)
- It represents the age in which we now live. The age of reason and humanism.
- You notice there are no in-between fish. They are either good or bad.
- This age has gotten to the point where there is no in between area.
- There is the separation of good and evil occurring in the world. It is the age of reason and humanism where faith is mocked in exchange for scientific reasoning.
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- The Parable of the Scribe and the Householder (Mat 13:51-52)
- Read Mat 13:51-52
- The context of the parable is “have you understood all these things?”
- In other words, now that you know how the nature of the kingdom of God works in this present day church age by these parables in Mat 13, the parable of the scribe and the householder is to be your reaction.
- Who are the scribes to whom Jesus is speaking? (see vs. 36,51)
- The Greek word for scribe is “gramma” from where we get our English word grammar.
- Originally scribes were men of letters, teachers of the Law, and qualified to teach in synagogues.
- They were originally taken from the priests and the Levites. Ezra is an example of a good scribe who read the Law and explained it rightly bringing national repentance.
- Eventually, Christ denounced the scribes of His time because they prevented true access to God. (Luk 11:52-53).They were ambitious for personal honor.
- The disciples are, therefore, the new order of scribes.
- They are to teach and show men the Christian life.
- Jesus is the Chief Scribe. He received truth from God, the Father, and passed it on to the disciples who, in turn were to pass it on to others. (Joh 17:14)
- We are to be scribes:
- Who are the scribes to whom Jesus is speaking? (see vs. 36,51)
We are to be disciples who learn and then teach.
The word disciple means = learner
To Jesus the terms scribe and disciple were synonymous terms.
A disciple is one who follows another’s teachings, but not just a learner but an adherent and imitator of the teacher. (Joh 8:31 Joh 15:8)
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- Who is the householder?
- The term “householder” is one who owns and occupies a house. He was master of the house having ultimate authority as well as responsibility to provide for those under him.
- Jesus is the householder.
- Notice the scribe is like a householder (52).
- As disciples we are to imitate jesus. He gives us a measure of authority and we are to provide for others.
- What does the treasure represent? Spiritual riches of the kingdom; A rich supply of knowledge of the Law and the gospels.
- Why do you think he says, “things new and things old“?
- Prophecies and Law of the Old Testament with the significance of New Testament explanations and meanings.
- The Law is old, the gospel is new, yet the new gospel came out of the old Law.
- Old truths are eternal, God has not changed from the Old Testament to the New. Each is an integral part of the other.
- Without one the other is incomplete.
- What is the central truth of this parable?
- As we receive the word of God from the Old and the New Testament, we are to put it into practice in our lives, and then spread the word to others.
- We are to be disciples and teachers (scribes).
- Who is the householder?
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Parable Comparisons: Sower and the Seed/Scribe and the Householder
| The Parable of the Sower and the Seed | The Parable of the Scribe and the Householder |
| Mat 13:3-23 | Mat 13:51-52 |
| The word of God is received into the heart. | The word of God is imparted to others. |
| Something is put in (the seed) | Something is brought out (the treasure) |
| It produces fruit for God | It produces good for men |
| Keeping what we get | Giving what we have |
| Represents the evangelist who spreads the word. | Represents the teacher who builds on the work of the evangelist. |
- Read Mat 13:53-58 The rejected King
- What is it that limits the work of God?
- Unbelief
- It was because of unbelief that Jesus’ ministry was spiritually and physically limited and restricted.
- Unbelief progressed toward rejection of Jesus as their Messiah.
Homework
Matthew 14:1-21
- Application of Mat 13:47-58
- Are you continually aware of the Holy Spirit’s efforts to use you to preach the gospel to the unsaved that cross your path?
- Pray this week that your spirit will be open to the Holy Spirit in this regard.
- Pray God will cross your path with someone who is unsaved and has a heart toward God this week.
- Write your experiences here:
- Preparation for Mat 14:1-21
- Read Mat 14:1-21 and John 6:1-14
- What do you learn about faith from the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand?
- Read Mat 14:1-21 and John 6:1-14
- Memory verse: Phil 4:19
