qbsJSTJLZJS. 
 
 Book'. iL>J$ 
 
 Copyright If 
 
 COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 
 
THE 
 SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 OF 
 
 THE KINGDOM 
 
 BY 
 REV. SAMUEL LINN 
 
\ Two Copies rtewivtxi 
 
 JUN 8 1308 
 
 £TV?5r 
 
 Copyright by 
 
 Samuel Linn 
 
 Jan. 27, 1908 
 
 PRESS OF 
 
 THE WOOLVEETON PRINTING & PUBLISHING CO., 
 
 OftAGE, IOWA 
 

 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 The thirteenth chapter of the gospel of 
 Matthew is not only a very interesting, but 
 also a very important chapter, containing as 
 it does the unfolding ot the mysteries of the 
 Kingdom of the heavens: "even the mystery 
 which from the beginning of the world hath 
 been hid in God'j— Eph. 3:9. This chapter 
 contains seven parables which according to 
 verse 53 were all delivered by the Savior up- 
 on one and the same occasion, and in these 
 seven parables the Lord Jesus clearly sets forth 
 the Truth concerning the establishment and 
 the growth of the Kingdom of the Heavens 
 in this age. In verses 1-3 we see that Jesus 
 leaves the house in which He had been stay- 
 ing with His disciples and goes down to the 
 seaside where He spake many things to the 
 multitudes in parables and without a par- 
 able spake He not unto them. (v. 34.) Then 
 in v. 10 immediately after He had finished 
 the first parable, the disciples asked Him why 
 speakest thou unto them in parables? We 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 too would ask that question, but before we 
 attempt an explanation, let us first under- 
 stand what is meant by a parable. The par- 
 ables of the Lord Jesus are invariably the de- 
 scription of some heavenly thing under the 
 image of an earthly thing. This does not 
 mean that the Lord Jesus used anything fic- 
 titious or untrue to illustrate His teaching. 
 Invariably He takes one of the common, 
 familiar things of everyday life, such as the 
 sower, the seed, the salt, the mustard tree, 
 the leaven, the treasure, the merchant seek- 
 ing pearls and the fisherman with his net; 
 these familar things taken out of the occur- 
 rences of everyday life He uses to illustrate 
 the mysterious and unseen. All the parables 
 in this chapter or any other chapter in the 
 Gospels are facts and occurrences with which 
 the hearer was not only very familiar, but 
 which were often being carried out even while 
 the Savior was speaking. The Savior's 
 teaching had ever been characterized by sim- 
 plicity and directness, hence we too with the 
 disciples ask the question why speakest thou 
 unto them in parables? What was His pur- 
 pose? We are not left in doubt for the Sa- 
 vior Himself answers the question. First of 
 
INTRODUCTION 5 
 
 all we are to remember that the Savior did 
 not use parables that He might more effectu- 
 ally conceal the Truth from those who had 
 rejected Him in unbelief. Would it not have 
 been dishonest and deceitful in Him to pro- 
 fess to be the Way, the Truth and the Life 
 and then deliberately so mask or veil the 
 Truth, that the many would be confused 
 while only the few could understand. On the 
 contrary we know positively that from the 
 manger to the cross not the least shade of 
 deceit or dishonesty was ever found in His 
 life. Why then did He use the parable? That 
 He might aid and not hinder in the proper 
 understanding of His teaching. For example 
 some one tells you there is a spot on the sun, 
 if you want to see it, what do you do? You 
 cannot see it with the naked eye, no not even 
 w r ith the aid of a telescope, the dazzling light 
 w r ill only blind you; but if you use a piece of 
 smoked glass then you can see clearly and 
 that without any discomfort. So it is with 
 the parable like the smoked glass, it veils the 
 truth but does not blind our eyes. It is 
 rather an assistance to correct vision and 
 proper understanding. But in addition to 
 all this notice the Saviors answer v. 11, He 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 answered and said unto them, because it is 
 given unto you to know the mysteries of the 
 kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not 
 given. Notice again that this is not all of 
 His answer, v. 12, for whosoever hath to 
 him shall be given and he shall have more 
 abundance; but whosoever hath not from 
 him shall be taken even that he hath. Notice 
 that the necessary knowledge was given to 
 the disciples by which they were enabled to 
 understand the mystery of the kingdom set 
 forth in the parables of our Lord; but this 
 same knowledge which was given to them 
 was not given to others, and the lack of this 
 knowledge made it impossible for them to 
 understand the parables of the Lord Jesus. 
 Now why was there such a difference? What 
 w^as it that the disciples of the Lord Jesus 
 possessed that the other men lacked? The 
 disciples of the Lord Jesus were not richer 
 than other men, nor were they wiser in mat- 
 ters of worldly wisdom, but they were richer 
 in faith and it was this faith that enabled 
 them to understand the mysteries of the 
 kingdom. The people who could not under- 
 stand the parables were those who had no 
 faith in the Lord Jesus as Savior and king. 
 
INTRODUCTION / 
 
 Notwithstanding His gracious ministry, in 
 spite of His wonderful teaching and all the 
 signs and wonders that He wrought among 
 them as mighty witnesses of His divinity, 
 they still rejected Him and by that rejection 
 they lost the power that the disciples gained 
 in receiving Christ. So it is to this very day 
 when we accept Christ in simple childlike 
 faith our eyes are opened, we see that which 
 before was mystery, for the promise has ever 
 been believe and thou shalt know. But so 
 long as we reject Christ our eyes are closed 
 to a proper understanding of the Truth, the 
 gospel seems a mystery, but if it is a mystery, 
 it is a mystery to them that are lost, lost 
 through unbelief. In v. 13 the Savior ex- 
 plains further, '/therefore speak I to them in 
 parables; because seeing that they see not 
 and hearing the;y hear not neither do they 
 understand.' ' Herein was the prophecy of 
 Isaiah 6:9 fulfilled. The people to whom the 
 Lord Jesus ministered had for centuries been 
 well trained in the 0. T, truth, they were 
 very well prepared to receive the message of 
 Jesus, but they refused to receive Him, hence 
 though they saw Him w4th the natural eye 
 they would not look to Him with the eye of 
 
8 INTRODUCTION 
 
 faith; though they heard Him with the nat- 
 ural ear they would not listen or obey. Then 
 our Lord strives to gain their attention by 
 an all together different method, namely: by 
 speaking to them in parables. What infinite 
 patience and wonderful compassion is here 
 displayed. When the people through wailful 
 rejection and unbelief had closed their eyes 
 and were as asleep, then instead of abandon- 
 ing them, we see the Saviour attempting to 
 rouse them from the lethargy of unbelief by 
 speaking to them in parables. Yet we should 
 ever bear in mind that it was not to the mul- 
 titudes alone that the Savior spoke in par- 
 ables but in v. 52 of this chapter and often 
 thereafter we find that the Savior speaks to 
 the disciples in parables, for they too as well 
 as the multitudes w^ere in blindness and dark- 
 ness at times. He spake unto them in par- 
 ables. What a volume of love and patience 
 is contained in those words. As w-e carefully 
 and prayerfully look into this chapter may 
 our eyes be opened to behold the mysteries 
 of the kingdom; for the King has said "if we 
 have faith it is given us to know^." Before 
 we take up these parables separately let us 
 look at them in a general w T ay. In Gen. 41:45 
 
INTRODUCTION 9 
 
 we read of one whom Pharoah called "Zaph- 
 nath-Pananearr' which means revealer of 
 secrets. This person is Joseph, the Hebrew 
 lad, who after he was rejected by his breth- 
 ren became the interpreter of dreams and the 
 revealer of secrets before the great king. In 
 this wonderful chapter we behold Jesus as 
 the rejected one. First they rejected John, 
 the fore-runner, then they reject the King 
 Himself and after that, Christ Jesus rejected by 
 His brethren like Joseph of old, now becomes 
 the revealer of secrets. Even a casual survey 
 of this thirteenth chapter of Matthew shows 
 that it contains seven parables which are 
 best known as the seven parables of the 
 Kingdom. Notice the Savior uses the expres- 
 sion, ^the Kingdom of Heaven is like" no less 
 than six times in these seven parables, there- 
 fore it is well for us to know at the very out- 
 set, what is meant by the Kingdom of Heav- 
 ens. First the Kingdom of Heaven is not 
 the Church. You may search the Scriptures 
 from Gen. to Rev. and you will not find a 
 single passage where the Church is called the 
 Kingdom of the Heavens. The Savior first 
 mentions the w^ord Church in Matthew 16:18 
 where he says, "I will build Mv Church." 
 
10 INTRODUCTION 
 
 The Church was not yet in existence when 
 our Lord was on earth, and He nowhere in 
 all His teaching refers to the Church as the 
 Kingdom of the Heavens. Xor does the Holy 
 Spirit refer to the Church as the Kingdom, 
 but He speaks of the Church as the Body of 
 Christ, the Bride of Christ, the Habitation of 
 God, a Temple and a House but nearer as the 
 Kingdom. What then does our Lord mean 
 by the Kingdom of the Heavens? The a 
 wer is very plain. Christ offered the King- 
 dom to Israel, but Israel rejected the offer. 
 Then Christ like the Sower in the first par- 
 able went out into the world wide field, scat- 
 tering the precious seed of Truth through 
 His own ministry and that of His disciples 
 and wherever the Truth in Christ Jesus has. 
 been proclaimed, wherever men have been 
 brought face to face with the question what 
 will you do with Jesus that is Christendom 
 that is the Kingdom. Therefore we see that 
 while the Church is not the Kingdom yet the 
 Church is in the Kingdom. 
 
 In these seven parables of the Kingdom 
 the Savior tells us what men will do with the 
 work He began on earth. All the opposition 
 and hatred the world is to direct against the 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
 cause of Christ is clearly foretold. The seven 
 parables of the kingdom are susceptible : 
 of a twc -; jl:l falvisiom the nrst four and the 
 last three. ) The nrst four were delivered be- 
 fore the multitudes the ' H: ha;l ::is- 
 missed the multitudes. He :. : — into the house 
 with His disciples and in taefr hearia . He de- 
 livers ti fan ■ .".r;hbe: : Turrherm : re 
 our 1 ta- drst v les. but 
 leaves the last dve aueauhaiuef, although He 
 gives us a :t:~ m n tne m st 
 parable (the dragnet 
 
 of t iut: gr : .;:: s 
 
 of two. (1) The Sower who went out 
 sov :e:uv s: rs. These 
 
 refer ".. the ;; iaui:m o: the 
 kiima /: : t a :h_ h :; f men. 
 
 The growth of the burnt;::: is ahm umdieiin 
 these parable? and the conditions of conflict 
 therein described are to last t the vera end 
 of the age. i : ; 
 
 of the mustard seed and the parable of the 
 leaven. These two parables describe the 
 growth 07 the king;! : : internal and ex- 
 
12 INTRODUCTION 
 
 the two mysteries in the Kingdom, Israel 
 God's earthly people hid in the field and the 
 Church, the pearl of great price for which He 
 has given all. The parable of the dragnet 
 stands alone and refers to the end of the age. 
 Again we may look upon these parables 
 from another view point. When we turn to 
 Rev. 2 and 3 we find in the message of Christ 
 to the seven churches the outline of the his- 
 tory of the Kingdom of the Heavens. When 
 we compare these seven parables with the mes- 
 sage to the seven churches we find a most 
 striking similarity. Compare the parable of 
 the Sower with the message to the church at 
 Ephesus. Do not both alike refer to the 
 apostolic age? The beginning of the king- 
 dom, with its failure and forsaking of the 
 first love. Compare the parable of the wheat 
 and the tares with the message to Smyrna. 
 Compare the parable of the mustard seed 
 with Pergamos. Under Constantine the 
 great, the Church becomes a big states insti- 
 tution. It is like a great tree to which the 
 nations like unclean birds fly for shelter. 
 Compare the parable of the leaven with Thy- 
 atira, the Roman age marked by the rise of 
 the papacy and all the abominations of Ca- 
 
INTRODUCTION 13 
 
 tholicism. Compare the parable of the treas- 
 ure hid in the field with Sardis, the reform- 
 ation era. Compare the parable of the pearl 
 with Philadelphia. Compare the parable of the 
 dragnet with Laodicea, neither hot nor cold, 
 therefore judgment is soon to come. We sim- 
 ply offer these as suggestions to an introduct- 
 ory study of the seven parables of the kingdom. 
 Finally we glance for a moment at the 
 last parable. Most generally we think of 
 this thirteenth chapter of Matthew as con- 
 taining but seven parables, whereas there 
 are really eight. The seven parables unfold 
 the mysteries of the kingdom, while the 
 eighth deals with the responsibilities of those 
 who know the truth. After our Lord had 
 declared the seven parables He asked His dis- 
 ciples, "Have ye understood all these things?" 
 Hardly knowing what they said they an- 
 swered yea Lord. Of course they did not un- 
 derstand all and the Savior realized that 
 they did not. He knew they had a glimmer- 
 ing of the Truth, and He also knew that af- 
 ter His decease, the Holy Spirit would guide 
 them into all Truth; so He accepts their ans- 
 wer and charges them with their responsibil- 
 ity. 
 
CHAPTER I 
 The Parable of the Sower 
 
 Matthew 13:3-9; 18-23 
 
 And he spake to them many things in 
 parables, saying, Behold, the sower went 
 forth to sow; and as he sowed, some seeds 
 fell by the wayside, and the birds came and 
 devoured them; and others fell upon the rocky 
 places, where they had not much earth; and 
 straightway they sprang up, because they 
 had no deepness of earth; and when the sun 
 was risen, they were scorched; and because 
 they had no root; they withered away. And 
 others fell among the thorns; and the thorns 
 grew up, and choked them; and others fell 
 upon the good ground, and yielded fruit, some 
 a hundred fold, some sixty, some thirty. He 
 that hath ears to hear let him hear * * # 
 Hear then ye the parable of the sower. When 
 anyone heareth the word of the kingdom, 
 and understandeth it not, then cometh the evil 
 one, and snatcheth away that which hath 
 been sown in his heart. This is he that was 
 
 15 
 
16 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 sown by the wayside. And he that was 
 sown upon the rocky places, this is he that 
 heareth the word and straightway with joy 
 receiveth it; yet hath he not root in himself, 
 but endure th for a while; and when tribula- 
 tion or persecution ariseth because of the 
 word, straightway he stumbleth. And he 
 that was sown among thorns, this is he that 
 heareth the word, and the care ol the world, 
 and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the 
 word, and he becometh unfruitful. And he 
 that was sown upon the good ground, this is 
 he that heareth the word and understandeth 
 it; who verily beareth fruit, and bringeth 
 forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some 
 thirty. 
 
 THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER 
 
 The first parable of the Kingdom is the 
 well known parable of the sower. Our Lord 
 evidently considered a thorough understand- 
 ing of this parable quite essential, for it is one 
 of the two parables which He explains to His 
 disciples and in Mark 4:13 He says that if 
 they could not understand this first parable, 
 they would not be able to understand the 
 others which He proclaimed afterwards. 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER 17 
 
 We notice that there are four points of 
 main importance in this parable (1) The 
 Sower, (2) the Seed, (3) the Soil, (4) the Re- 
 sult of the sowing or the Harvest. 
 
 (1) The SOWER "Behold the Sow^er 
 went out to sow " There are two things 
 that immediately attract our attention in 
 these opening words of the parable. (1) Our 
 Lord speaks of the sower and not of a sower. 
 (2) That the Sower went out. Who is the 
 Sower? It is not difficult to explain the person- 
 ality of the Sower; though the Lord does not 
 tell us who the Sower is in His explanation of 
 the first parable, yet in His exposition of the 
 second parable He says " He that soweth the 
 good seed is the Son of Man." Our Lord 
 himself is the sower. The sow^er of the seed 
 in Palestine did not live in the country as the 
 farmer does in our land; but his home w r as 
 generally found in some little hamlet, from 
 which he must go out to the distant field to 
 sow the grain. The Sow^er, that is the Savior 
 went out from His home in heaven to earth 
 bearing the precious seed. He came first to 
 His own people Israel but they would not re- 
 ceive Him, their attitude toward Him is 
 described in (Is. 5:2-7) " He fenced it in, and 
 
18 THE SEVEN PARABI.ES 
 
 gathered out the stones thereof, and planted 
 it with the choicest vines, and built a tower 
 in the midst of it, and also made a winepress 
 therein; and He looked that it should bring 
 forth grapes, and it brought forth wild 
 grapes ^ # # and now go to; I will tell you 
 what I will do to my vineyard: I will take 
 away the hedge thereof, and it shall be trod- 
 den down." Israel was the vineyard of (Is. 5) 
 which the Lord himself planted with care, 
 but in spite of all His care, it brought forth 
 wild grapes; this indicates the rebellious spirit 
 with which Israel rejected the gracious min- 
 istry of our Lord. Then our Lord laid the 
 vineyard waste and bare and now behold the 
 Sower went out: our Lord went out from His 
 own people who had rejected him and hence- 
 forth He goes out into the worldwide field 
 scattering the precious seed. " Beginning at 
 Jerusalem unto Samaria the Sower goes even 
 to the uttermost parts of the world. " The 
 sowing He began continues still, and the re- 
 sult or the harvest is still the same. 
 
 (2) The Seed. What is the seed? When 
 w^e look at the parable apart from the 
 Savior's interpretation of it, we are apt to 
 think that the harvest depends upon the kind 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER 19 
 
 of soil upon which the seed is sown. How- 
 ever when we study the Savior's interpreta- 
 tion of the parable, we see that the quality of 
 the harvest depends upon the nature of the 
 seed. If the Savior had not explained the 
 parable, we would be disposed to think that 
 the harvest depends altogether upon the 
 quality of the soil. That is, if the seed fall 
 upon the highway, or upon the stony ground, 
 or among thorns, we say there will be no 
 harvest; but if the seed fall upon the good 
 ground, there will be much fruit. This is 
 man's interpretation: notice that the Savior 
 in His interpretation of the parable does not 
 place any importance upon the condition of 
 the soil, but He places all the importance up- 
 on the condition of the seed which is cast into 
 the soil. As we carefully examine the Savior's 
 interpretation of this parable, we see that 
 there is one expression that occurs no less 
 than four times. It is this "he that w^as 
 sown" this expression refers to the seed and 
 notice that the seed is not referred to as it, 
 but this is he. This expression "he that was 
 sown" is the keyword of the interpretation 
 passage. Let us read this passage verse 18 
 "Hear ye then the parable of the sower. 
 
20 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 When anyone heareth the Word of the King- 
 dom and understandeth it not, then cometh 
 the evil one and snatcheth away that which 
 has been sown in his heart. This is he that 
 was sown by the wayside.-" Notice closely 
 the Savior says this is he that was sown by 
 the wayside. Not this is it but this is he. 
 (v 20) "and he that was sown upon the 
 rocky places" notice again not it but he. 
 (v 22) "and he that was sown among 
 thorns " notice again he that was sown and 
 not it (v 23) "and he that was sown upon 
 good ground " notice again he that was sown 
 and not it. This fourfold explanation proves 
 beyond the shadow of a doubt that the seed is 
 not simply the written or the spoken Word 
 of God but the seed is that portion of the 
 Word which has become so thoroughly in- 
 corporated in us that it is a part of our being 
 and that which was the written word has 
 now become incarnate in us. The word is 
 now the active principle of our life. Hence 
 the Savior in referring to the seed speaks of 
 the seed as a person he not it and in His in- 
 terpretation of the second parable He says of 
 the good seed "these are the sons of the king- 
 dom." With this interpretation in view, let 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER 21 
 
 us now carefully examine our Lord's descrip- 
 tion of the different kinds of seed. 
 
 (1) " He that was sown by the w ay side' ' 
 Who is he that was sown by the w^ayside? 
 Our Lord answers " anyone w^ho heareth the 
 word of the kingdom and understandeth it 
 not." These are the class who hear the w^ord 
 with the natural ear only. The heavenly 
 harmony of the gospel wakes no echo in their 
 soul, to them it's music is as sounding brass 
 and as a tinkling cymbal. They hear, but do 
 not understand and so the evil one comes and 
 snatches away that w 7 hich was sown in the 
 heart. Then this man's heart becomes like a 
 seed that has fallen upon the beaten high- 
 way, there is now no possibility for growth 
 and the life which like the seed might have 
 produced a multiplied harvest in the establish- 
 ment and upbuilding of the kingdom is now 
 sterile and barren; for the seed is now either 
 ground to powder under the wheels of com- 
 mercialism or snatched up by evil passions 
 which like birds of prey are ever seeking that 
 which they may devour. (2) "He that was 
 sown upon rocky places." Who does this 
 mean? The Savior answers " this is he that 
 hears the word and immediately receives it 
 
22 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 with joy, but has no root in himself but en- 
 dure for awhile; then when tribulation or 
 persecution cometh because of the word 
 straightway he stumbleth. This represents 
 a class of hearers who not only hear the word 
 of the kingdom, but who accept it and rejoice 
 in it, but they do not go beyond that. They 
 do not allow the word to take deep root in 
 their lives. Beneath the thin shallow soil 
 with which they cover over their unregener- 
 ate nature there is the heart of stone that has 
 never been broken under the Holy Spirit's 
 convicting power. Alas how many there ever 
 have been in this class; putting on the form 
 of godliness but denying the power thereof, 
 springing up and for a time giving indication 
 of life and health, but when the time of trial 
 comes they have no power of resistance, so 
 they wither and die without bearing fruit, 
 doing nothing for the upbuilding or advance- 
 ment of the Kingdom. (3) v 22 " He that 
 was sown among thorns." This man repre- 
 sents the class of those who hear the word 
 and even receive it, but the cares of the age 
 and the deceitfulness of riches like great rank 
 weeds choke the word so that this man dies 
 and passes out of the world bearing no fruit, 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER 23 
 
 doing nothing toward the growth or estab- 
 lishment of the Kingdom. When we think of 
 the many claims the world makes today up- 
 on the minds of men, and the strenuous life 
 that many lead, we need not look far for ex- 
 amples that illustrate this class. (4) v 23 
 44 but he that is sown upon the good ground, 
 this is he who hears and understands the 
 word, who bears fruit also some 30, some 
 60, some 100 fold." This represents the class 
 w^hose hearts have been made receptive to the 
 truth by the agency of the Holy Spirit and 
 the w 7 ord now becomes the ruling principle of 
 their life, therefore they have a subtle influ- 
 ence that w r orks mightily for the growth and 
 establishment of the Kingdom. 
 
 (3) The Soil. Let us now consider the 
 signifigance of the soil into which the seed 
 was sown. Where does the sower generally 
 sow the seed? In the field. Where is the field? 
 The Savior 's answer is "the field is the world." 
 But w^e may ask if the Savior is the Sow r er, 
 and the good seed is the sons of the Kingdom, 
 and the soil or the field is sown is the world, 
 how r long does the sowing of the seed con- 
 tinue? Does the sowing of the seed cease 
 after the Savior has ascended unto the 
 
24 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 Father? We answer, the sowing He began 
 still continues and the result is still the same. 
 Though absent from the world, our Lord is 
 still at work, through His disciples the King- 
 dom is still being advanced, the seed is still 
 being sown, John 14:12 "Verily, verily I say 
 unto you, he that believeth on Me, the works 
 that I do, shall he do also, and greater works 
 than these shall he do because I go unto My 
 Father.' ' Thus we see that the sowing He 
 began still continues and the results are still 
 the same. Will this sowing continue to the 
 end of time? We answer that the sowing of 
 the seed will continue to the end of this age. 
 But what will mark the end of this age? 
 " The coming of the Lord." What marks the 
 beginning of the age in which we live? The 
 age in which we live is defined by Paul as the 
 dispensation of grace, Rom. 6:14. This dis- 
 pensation of grace begins with the cross of 
 Calvary and extends to "the coming of our 
 Lord for His saints." (IThess. 4:16-18) Dur- 
 ing this age (the dispensation of grace) the 
 sons of the Kingdom will continue the work 
 of advancing the Kingdom until the King 
 himself comes to take his own to himself. 
 We build up or set back the growth of the 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER 25 
 
 Kingdom in proportion as our lives are fruit- 
 ful of good or evil. We hasten or retard the 
 Coming of Christ our King in proportion as 
 we watch and w^ork and pray for His coming. 
 
 (4) The Result or the Harvest. Let us 
 bear in mind that the Savior is the sower of 
 the seed, the seed represents those persons 
 whose life is the very incarnation of the w^ord 
 of Christ, the soil or the field is the world in 
 which we live, and upon which our lives ex- 
 ert a subtle influence that w T orks mightily for 
 the upbuilding of the Kingdom in this age 
 (the dispensation of grace). 
 
 Xow as to the harvest or the result. 
 What will become of all this seed that is 
 sown? Will the world receive it? Will we 
 be able to sow the entire field? We often 
 hear it said that the world is growing better 
 and better and hy and by the whole w^orld 
 w T ill be converted and then Christ wall come. 
 We do not know on .what foundation this 
 theory is built but w^e are very sure that it is 
 not based upon the Truth of Holy Scripture 
 as it is found in these parables of the King- 
 dom. Notice that in this very first parable 
 of the Kingdom the Savior teaches that there 
 wall not be a universal acceptance of the 
 
26 THE SEVEN PAR ABIDES 
 
 Truth in this age. In fact we see very clearly 
 that only one-fourth part of the seed sown 
 bears any fruit besides all of that which does 
 bear fruit, does not yield alike, some bears 
 30, some 60, some, only a small proportion, 
 bears 100 fold. 
 
 PERSONAL APPLICATION— The sower 
 of the seed goes up and down the world-wide 
 field which He has sown and is still sowing 
 with the seed and as He goes the eyes of the 
 King look closely for the harvest of the king- 
 dom. He looks closely into your life and 
 mine, for it is the character of your life that 
 determines the character of the harvest. 
 Here He comes to a place where the seed was 
 sown but the ground is bare, not a blade or 
 single stalk of grain is to be seen; it is as if it 
 were sown by the wayside and He says "this 
 is he that heareth the word of the Kingdom 
 and understandeth it not," Then we hear 
 the despairing cry O! Master! Can it be that 
 we who have so often heard thy word, have 
 been so heedless as never to understand? 
 Give us back! O give us back! the years of life 
 lest we come into thy presence empty handed, 
 bringing nothing but leaves. But alas the 
 harvest is past, the summer is ended and so 
 
THE PARABIvE OF THE SOWER 27 
 
 these pass out of the world, without having 
 advanced the kingdom of Christ their Lord. 
 Again the Savior comes to a spot which 
 but afe w days before was green and luxuriant 
 but now it is drj^ and withered, it is the seed 
 which was sown upon the stony ground. 
 We listen, and 0! with what sadness do we 
 hear Him S8ij y " These are they who at first 
 received the word with gladness, but w-hen 
 tribulation came because of the word they 
 stumbled.'' These are the fair weather Chris- 
 tians, there was a great deal of enthusiasm 
 and promise in their service and testimony 
 when the\^ first came to Christ, and as long 
 as there was sunshine and flowers all went 
 well, but by and by the way became steep 
 and thorny and they forsake the way of the 
 Cross for the primrose path of worldly pleas- 
 ure and indulgence, and so they too pass out 
 without having advanced the Kingdom of 
 Christ their Lord. Again the Lord comes to 
 a place which the growing grain was cover- 
 ing as with a carpet of living green, but now- 
 all is hidden beneath a rank growth of weeds; 
 and the sower says "this is he that heareth 
 the word but the cares of the age and the 
 deceitfulness of riches choked the Word of 
 
28 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 Truth. There was too much business, no 
 time left for the Master and so although 
 these may have influenced the age mightily in 
 a social or a commercial way, and though 
 they were widely known and highly honored 
 in the world because of their influence and 
 great achievement, yet they must now pass 
 out, to be forever forgotten and unknown in 
 that great Kingdom toward the advance- 
 ment and establishment of which they have 
 contributed nothing. 
 
 Again the Savior comes to places where 
 the ripening grain can be seen whitening for 
 the harvest and the sower says 4 'thisishe 
 that heareth the word and understandeth it; 
 who verily beareth fruit some 30, some 60, 
 some 100 fold. These heard and understood 
 the word. It was their meditation day and 
 night. Perhaps they did not get on so fast, 
 nor up so high in the eyes of men, but their 
 lives were prolific in righteousness. Their 
 every thought, and word, and deed, was as a 
 seed, which in turn, bore a multiplied harvest 
 for the King. 
 
 What is your life? Is it the seed sown 
 on good ground, that springs up and bears 
 100 fold? Are your words, and thoughts, 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE SOWER 29 
 
 and deeds, like seeds that bear a multiplied 
 harvest for the King? Remember the time is 
 short and the days are evil. In the morning 
 sow thy seed; sow it bountifully even now 
 while it is called today. Soon the night 
 comes when man's work is done. Do not 
 complain because the Sower has cast your 
 lot in the stony places, or among the thorns 
 or even upon the beaten highway. If you 
 have heard and understand the Word it mat- 
 ters not where your lot is cast. His power 
 within can overcome the opposition of the 
 age and transform the very desert into a 
 watered garden. Let us then sit at His feet 
 and learn of Him. May the Holy Spirit ever 
 take the things of Christ and show them to 
 us, till we understand, then shall we indeed 
 glorify the Father by bearing much fruit. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 The Parable of the Tares 
 
 Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43 
 
 Another parable set he before them, say- 
 ing, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a 
 man that sowed good seed in his field; but 
 while men slept, his enemy came and sowed 
 tares also among the wheat, and went away. 
 But when the blade sprang up, and brought 
 forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 
 And the servants of the householder came 
 and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow 
 good see in thy field? Whence then hath it 
 tares? And he said unto them an enemy 
 hath done this. And the servants say unto 
 him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather 
 them up? But he saith, nay; lest haply while 
 ye gather up the tares, ye root up the wheat 
 with them. Let both grow together until 
 the harvest, and in the time of harvest I will 
 say to the reapers, Gather up first the tares, 
 and bind them in bundles to burn them, but 
 gather the wheat into my barn. * * * Then 
 
zt .-': the rr ;i ~ -: in : : - 
 
 house: and his disciples came unto him, say- 
 
 E znlafn unto us the parable of the ta 
 : : -.it ::/' A _.::= - -e: H; 
 
 i the good seed is the Son of man; 
 
 Id is the world; and the good seed, 
 these are the sons of the kingdom; and 
 
 :t — sirs :: 
 enemy that sowed them is the devil: and the 
 _ i r ~. _ - — . 
 
 tr5 ;-:: :ht ;-::._;-_.- -.5 ::::::::: ::::;::> ?.rt 
 gathered up and burned with fire: so shall it 
 be in the end of the world. The Son of Man 
 shall send forth his angels, and they shall 
 gather oat of his k : ~ r i : ti ?.'.'. z "_: :: :;■ 
 
 ----- - - - — ■ — --5 — — — — — — - - - _""',' ' 
 
 and shall cast, them into the furnace of fire; 
 there shall be the weeping and gnashing of 
 ..-. Z'-±~ 5.:?_". ----- rli-htt'.us siiirt : : ni 
 as the son in the Kingdom of their Father. 
 Hi -3- j:?- ;; tarE :: jitar -tr. lum itar 
 
 THE PARABLE OF THE TAR~ 8 
 
 In the latter part of the v. 36 of Matt. 
 13 we find the title of this parable. * 'and His 
 disciples came unto Him, saying explain un- 
 
 -- "5 tit ia.ra.Y_- ;: -.'.:- -_a.rt5~;: tit rltli. 
 
n 
 
 Fi 
 
 fidd 
 
 Iz this se: : :: :" t ; - in "he 
 
 n : the :': :: :•: ::: :s : :n.3.-ji :nt : r: :. ; 
 are: l t the Sower; 2. the seed; 3, the i 
 
 res.ht ::*the s:"':::^ :rthe ':i^.rrtsz 
 
 : ::., ? : ---.r : : 
 
 there was but one Sower, (the Son 
 
 tt:t in this cJirji/tLe ::"the t: - ■. s there 
 s:~~ers Hh ~"*e~er it :s :. : iirhetht 
 ti:j the ters iiiiihty :: these t~- : s:~ 
 Lord himself says, v. 37. * tt He that 
 the good seed is the Son of man" ai 
 He says, v. 39, fck amd the enemy tha 
 them the t.ires is the :ie"h h : — 
 the time ..:::: in :i.z7 : the r s ; ~ ti 
 S : :: : m.tr. s : ~-e :: the ^ : : :: See :: :.n . 
 in the light of day, when all wi 
 might see His work, and say it is tc 
 1 he eneniT S,.t .tr. s -- : : . ~hen ::?r 
 He :.ime t; ;:; His stritehh - ; rh ™ 
 slept. lest any should see that He wa 
 eril seed in another's field. 7 eh::. 
 character of the two sowers is most 
 
34 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 contrasted when we compare their w T ork. 
 The work of the Lord Jesus was ever done in 
 the light of day; He himself in referring to it 
 said, "in secret have I said nothing/ ' He 
 had nothing to conceal, for His works were 
 ever right and true. He himself was the 
 Way, the Truth, and the Life. Satan's w^ork 
 has ever been in the dark. He worked while 
 men slept, because his w^ork w^as evil and 
 could not be accomplished in the light of day. 
 He is the Prince ol darkness, the arch enemy, 
 and adversary of our souls. 
 
 (2) The Seed. In this parable there are 
 two kinds of seed — the good seed (the wheat) 
 and the evil seed (the tares.) What do these 
 tw^o kinds of seed represent? Like begets 
 like. Whatsoever a man soweth that shall 
 he also reap. The good seed represents the 
 Sons of the kingdom and the tares are the 
 sons of the evil one. The wheat was good, 
 like the Master w r ho sowed ii but the tares 
 were evil like the one from whom they came. 
 The tares or the darnel (so called from its 
 supposed stupefying pow r er) is a species of 
 wild grass, which, while grownng closely re- 
 sembles the w r heat or rye, but when it begins 
 to mature the difference is seen at once. The 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE TARES 35 
 
 seed of the darnel is poisonous. Recent in- 
 vestigations have shown the presence of a 
 fungus in the darnel seed to which its poison- 
 ous qualities are attributed. Why was such 
 seed sown? It had no value; it was not only 
 worthless but even poisonous. Why then 
 was it sown? The main object of the enemy 
 in sowing the darnel among the wheat was 
 to damage the work of the Sower of the 
 good seed as much as possible. The harvest 
 of good grain would be lighter, and the dar- 
 nel mixed with the wheat, v^ould lessen its 
 value. Note the subtle manner in which this 
 spiteful work was done. The enemy (Satan) 
 selects a poisonous seed (the darnel) which 
 looks like the wheat and which when grow- 
 ing can scarcely be distinguished from the 
 wheat, and while men slept he sows this evil 
 seed among the wheat. Satan's method has 
 ever been to cheat and deceive. He has de- 
 veloped great skill in counterfeiting the 
 Truth, so that at times he is able to deceive 
 the very elect of God. 
 
 When did the enemy begin to sow the 
 evil seed? (1) Immediately after the Sower 
 had cast the good seed into the soil. (2) 
 While men slept. 
 
36 THE SEVEN PARABI.ES 
 
 ( 1 ) Immediately after our Lord had pro- 
 claimed the Truth. Immediately after the 
 Lord had finished His work on earth and 
 ascended unto the Father in Heaven. No 
 sooner had the Holy Spirit descended upon 
 the disciples, than Satan begins his malicious 
 and hateful work. The enemy sows the 
 seed. In the days of the apostle Paul we be- 
 hold the tares among the wheat in the per- 
 sons of Ananias and Sapphira and later in 
 Simon Magus. These took the truth of 
 God's w r ord and changed it into a lie. They 
 were like the devil, the Father of lies of whom 
 they were begotten. 
 
 (2) While men slept. Notice: not while 
 the Sower slept, but while wen slept. The 
 Sower never slumbers or sleeps; but men into 
 whose hands the work of establishing and 
 advancing the Kingdom was given, these 
 who should have been watching while the 
 Lord was absent, (as He now is in this dispen- 
 sation of grace) fell asleep, and it was while 
 the Lord's Stewards were in this unwatchful 
 condition that the enemy came to sow the 
 tares in the wheat. This unwatchful con- 
 dition developed immediately after the Sower 
 had finished sowing the good seed, it did 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE TARES 37 
 
 not come at once but developed gradually. 
 Beginning with the apostolic age, down to 
 the present time, the work of the enemy has 
 been the same. Satan is still at work. He 
 is still using the old method of counterfeiting 
 the Truth. The devil can quote Scripture as 
 glibly as ever, but he never quotes it correct- 
 ly, he always changes the Truth and makes 
 it into a lie. In the beginning of this age we 
 behold the tares among the wheat. There 
 were those w-ho even from the beginning of 
 the age, denied the Diety of our Lord, they 
 also denied the fact of His ressurection and 
 did all they could to pervert the Truth. 
 These were the tares among the wheat, that 
 the enemy sowed as soon as the good seed 
 was sown. Today the home or foreign mis- 
 sionary knows by experience that satan is 
 still at work and that he still exercises all his 
 cunning and subtility to counterfeit the 
 Trath; as soon as the good seed is sown. 
 As soon as the fallow ground is broken up 
 and the good seed is sown, then immediately 
 the enemy comes and at the first opportunity 
 the tares are sowed among the wheat. 
 
 (3) The Soil. In this second parable as 
 in the first " the field is the world.' ' The two 
 
38 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 kinds of seed are sowed in the same field and 
 that field is the world. The word translated 
 world in this connection is Cosmos which 
 means the whole system of the universe, in- 
 cluding man, the earth, and all the creation 
 of God. The field then is the world (cosmos). 
 
 The ownership of the field: (v. 24) "the 
 kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man 
 who sowed good seed in his field.' ' The field 
 (cosmos) belongs to Christ the Sower of the 
 seed. Now w r e understand what the psalmist 
 meant when he wrote (Ps. 24:1) " The earth 
 is the Lord's and the fulness thereof, the 
 world and they that dwell therein." The 
 Lord Jesus sowed the good seed in the field 
 which was His, his by right of creation. The 
 enemy (satan) has no right in the field what- 
 ever, he is a trespasser, hence he does his 
 work when men sleep. 
 
 (4) The Result or the Harvest. Let us 
 bear in mind that the Savior is the Sower of 
 the good seed and that satan is the sower of 
 the evil seed; the good seed are the sons of the 
 kingdom and the tares are the sons of the evil 
 one; the field is the world: now as to the 
 Harvest. 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE TARES 39 
 
 The two kinds of seed are sowed in the 
 same field, they both spring up and grow 
 side by side. For awhile the presence of the 
 darnel in the w 7 heat is unnoticed, so closely 
 does it resemble the growing grain; but when 
 the seed appears, then the difference is appar- 
 ent. As soon as the servants of the King dis- 
 cover the darnel in the wheat, they go to him 
 and say, "Sir, didst thou not sow good seed 
 in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? 
 And he said unto them, an enenry hath done 
 this. And the servants say unto him, wilt 
 thou that we go and gather them up? But 
 he saith, nay; lest haply w^hile ye gather the 
 tares, ye root up the wheat with them." 
 Just here w^e take occasion to speak of an 
 error that has crept into the minds of a great 
 many Christian people, w^ho say, " we cannot 
 have a pure church or assembly, for the Lord 
 himself has said that the evil will always be 
 with us, and that we are not to put them out 
 who are the sons of the evil one." This theory 
 is based on the supposition that the Lord 
 is referring to the church and we find that 
 many 7 people hold to this theory and govern 
 their actions accordingly. Notice, however, 
 as mentioned before; the Held is not the 
 
40 THK SEVEN PARA.BLES 
 
 church, the field is the world (cosmos). The 
 kingdom of the heavens is not the church, 
 although the church is in the kingdom. Our 
 Lord is not referring here to evil that springs 
 up in the church, and when He says "let 
 both grow up together " he is not referring to 
 the evil that may be growing up with the 
 good in the church. Later on we find that 
 our Lord speaks very plainly concerning the 
 evil in the church, which He says is not to be 
 tolerated. In Matthew 18:15-17 we hear 
 Him say " If thy brother sin against thee go, 
 reprove him between him and thee alone. If 
 he hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. 
 But if he do not hear thee, take with thee one 
 or two besides, that every matter may stand 
 upon the word of two witnesses or three. 
 But if he will not listen to them, tell it to the 
 assembly; and if also he will not listen to the 
 assembly, let him be unto thee as one of the 
 nations and as a tax gatherer.' ' That is the 
 Savior's instruction concerning the dealing 
 with evil in the church and if we had the 
 courage to carry it out, while the member- 
 ship of the church might be cut down, the 
 efficiency and working power of the church 
 would be greatly increased. 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE TAKES 41 
 
 " The Harvest is the end of the world (the 
 age) and the reapers are the angels." In this 
 age (the dispensation of grace) the wheat 
 and the darnel grow up together. It is the 
 Master's will that it should be so, for he 
 hath said "let them grow up together." 
 How vain and idle is the dream of many who 
 today aim at world reformation, wasting 
 the time and effort that might have been 
 spent in sowing the seed, by attempting to 
 pluck up the tares by the roots. The time of 
 harvest is not yet come, and even when it 
 comes, it will not be given to man to do the 
 work committed to the angels, who shall 
 then gather together the tares and burn 
 them. The wheat and the tares grow up to- 
 gether until the end of the age and then comes 
 the Harvest. This harvest scene is vividly 
 described in Rev. 14:14-20 " And I looked and 
 behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one 
 sat like unto the Son of Man, having upon 
 His head a golden crown, and in His hand a 
 sharp sickle. And another angel came out of 
 the temple, crying with a loud voice to him 
 that sat upon the cloud, thrust in thy sickle 
 and reap; for the time is come for thee to 
 reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe." 
 
42 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 PERSONAL APPLICATION: (1) In the 
 beginning of the age the devil began his work 
 and still continues his work of counterfeiting 
 the Truth. On every hand we see him sow- 
 ing tares among the wheat. In Mormonism, 
 Zionism, Christian Science, etc., we behold 
 the result of his sowing. In these we see the 
 enemy has so cleverly wrested and misquoted 
 Scripture as to deceive man}^. Let us there- 
 fore be on our guard with loins girded and 
 the lights burning, watching against our foe. 
 
 (2) In this age a mixed condition of 
 good and evil prevails. What are we going 
 to do about it? Our blessed Lord never 
 advocated the Carrie Nation method of 
 smashing barfixtures and raiding the dens of 
 vice. The province of God's people is not to 
 attempt a mere world reformation by endeav- 
 oring to root out drunkenness, immorality 
 and other obnoxious evils of the age. Our 
 province is to sow the good seed with the 
 Master: as to the tares we see growing 
 among the wheat, the Master says let them 
 grow up together till the harvest; sometimes 
 we long for the harvest and in impatience we 
 exclaim "Why tarry the wheels of His 
 chariot " but in the fulness of time He will 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE TARES 43 
 
 come. Then the Sower of the seed will gath- 
 er the wheat into His own granary and the 
 tares will be gathered together in bundles 
 and burned . Some throw up their hands in 
 despair as they exclaim "Alas! the world is 
 growing worse!" and others say it is grow- 
 ing better. Nov; which is correct? We 
 answer the world is growing worse in this 
 sense, that evil is unquestionably on the in- 
 crease, and again the world is growing bet- 
 ter, in this sense that the good is unquestion- 
 ably growing stronger every day. We say 
 then that the world is growing better and it 
 is growing worse; which is only another way 
 of saying that the wheat and the tares are 
 both growing apace. A mixed condition of 
 good and evil prevails in this age until the 
 time of the end . 
 
 Finally it is possible for those who in 
 times past were known as the sons of the evil 
 one to become converted into the sons of the 
 Kingdom. This change is at once a great 
 miracle and mystery, impossible with man, 
 but possible with God. His power and it 
 alone can take the vile and sinful heart and 
 make it pure and submissive to His will. 
 
 As sons of the kingdom it may be your 
 
44 THE SEVEN PARABI.ES 
 
 lot to live and grow up among the tares. 
 Never fear if j^ou only ever hear and under- 
 stand His Word, their presence can have no 
 power to harm or hinder you. "Fret not 
 thyself because of evil doers, for they shall 
 soon be cut down like the grass. Commit 
 thy way unto Jehovah, trust also in Him, He 
 shall make thy righteousness to go forth as 
 the light and thy judgment as the noonday. 
 Let your light so shine before men that they 
 shall see your good works and glorify your 
 Father which is in heaven.' ' 
 
 There are many other questions that we 
 might discuss in connection with this parable 
 but as our Lord himself does not discuss 
 them, we will not take them up here. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 The Parable of the Millard Seed 
 
 Matthew 13:31-32. 
 
 Another parable set he before them, say- 
 ing, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a 
 grain of mustard seed, which a man took 
 and sowed in his field; which is indeed less 
 than all seeds; but when it is grown, it is 
 greater than the herbs, and becometh a tree 
 so that the birds of the heaven come and 
 lodge in the branches thereof. 
 
 THE PARABLE OF THE MUSTARD SEED 
 
 Although this parable of the Mustard 
 seed together with the other parables of the 
 Kingdom, that were declared after it, was 
 not taken up and explained separately as the 
 Master did with the first two parables; yet 
 in His interpretation of the first two parables 
 of the Kingdom, He places in our hands the 
 key whereby we are able to unlock the mean- 
 ing of the five parables that are left unex- 
 plained. With this key in our hands, let us 
 
 45 
 
46 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 then prayerful^ and reverently attempt the 
 study of the parable of the Mustard seed. 
 
 In this parable of the Mustard seed we 
 are able to mark out the four points of main 
 importance that were so clearly distinguish- 
 ed in the first two parables (The Sower, The 
 Seed, the Soil or the Field, and the Result or 
 the Harvest.) In addition to these four 
 points we find another ("the birds") of verse 
 32 has been added, and that the most promi- 
 nent idea in the parable is not the Sower nor 
 is it the seed but the marvelous shall we not 
 say the abnormal growth of the seed. 
 
 A comparative study of the scriptures of 
 the old and new testament at once reveals a 
 most harmonious relation and consistency. 
 The same applies with the teachings of the 
 Lord Jesus; you cannot find the slightest con- 
 fusion of ideas in all His teaching. All is har- 
 monious and consistent. If therefore such 
 perfect harmony prevails in all the other say- 
 ings of our Lord, we can safely argue that the 
 same harmony prevails in the parables also. 
 For example: if in His interpretation of the 
 first parable our Lord says that, "the Sower 
 of the seed is the Son of Man," then in every 
 parable that follows, where the sower is men- 
 
THE.;PASABTvE OF THE.MUSTARD .SEED 47 
 
 tioned we must naturally conclude that the 
 sower of the seed is still the Son of Man. Any 
 other interpretation would result in a con- 
 fusion of ideas. Therefore in this parable 
 the man who took the grain of Mustard seed 
 and sowed it in his field is the Son of Man, 
 the Sower of the good seed. The seed (mus- 
 tard) is the sons of the Kingdom. The soil 
 or the field in which he ^owed the seed is (cos- 
 mos) the world. The birds that roost in the 
 tree we shall see later are there for an evil 
 purpose. The remarkable or abnormal 
 growth of the seed comes in the end or con- 
 summation of the age. 
 
 Was it a common or natural thing for 
 the mustard seed to attain such a remarkable 
 growth as here described in this parable? 
 Was it a common thing for the traveler to see 
 a plant of mustard that had reached such an 
 enormous size that the fowls of the air made 
 their nests in it and flew to it as they would 
 to the widespreading branches of a great 
 tree for shelter and safety? We answer that 
 a mustard plant of such enormous size 
 would be a very rare and extraordinary sight 
 indeed, for by nature the mustard plant is 
 but a shrub that grows in the garden, often 
 
48 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 reaching a height of 7 or 8 feet. Yet as Dr. 
 Thompson says in his "The Land and the 
 Book, ' ' * 'after having seen pepper bushes grow 
 on year after year into tall shrubs, and the 
 castor bean line the brooks about Damascus 
 like willows and poplars, I can readily credit 
 the existence of mustard trees as large as are 
 here described in the parable of our Lord." 
 We are ever disposed to take the words of 
 our Lord as literally true. It may be that 
 the very spot where our Lord stood when He 
 proclaimed this parable was shaded by a 
 mustard tree of gigantic proportions so that 
 every person present could not help but no- 
 tice it and marvel at its extraordinary and 
 abnormal growth. Then the Savior who 
 had just finished illustrating the Truth con- 
 cerning the beginning of the Kingdom, now 
 takes the mustard tree which attracts the 
 attention of every one present and uses it to 
 illustrate the abnormal growth which the 
 Kingdom was destined to attain in the end 
 of the age. 
 
 The OBJECT of this parable is to illus- 
 trate the external growth of the Kingdom 
 which the Savior knew was destined to grow 
 and attain to a most unnatural and abnor- 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE MUSTARD SEED 49 
 
 mal growth. He knows the end from the 
 beginning and even though only one-fourth 
 of the seed He sows is productive of good, 
 even though an enemy is sowing darnel 
 among the wheat, yet the kingdom which in 
 its beginning is so small and unpromising is 
 destined to attain to a most wonderful 
 growth so that He says the kingdom of heav- 
 en is like to the Mustard seed so small and 
 insignificant in its beginning but w r hich 
 reaches such an unnatural size that the fowls 
 of the air fly to it for shelter. 
 
 But some would ask does not this para- 
 able teach us the marvelous growth of the 
 church? As we enter into a discussion of 
 this question let us note some facts concern- 
 ing the mustard tree. The mustard tree 
 springs from a little seed which is one of the 
 smallest of seeds and yet from this humble 
 beginning • there comes the great tree. In 
 like manner the church sprang from a most 
 humble beginning, and in the course of a few 
 centuries attained to a growth which is as 
 marvelous as the great mustard tree that 
 came from the tiny seed. 
 
 Again the mustard tree grew to such a 
 height and size that the birds of the air came 
 
50 THE SEVEN PARABI.ES 
 
 to it and built their nests in it finding secur- 
 ity and shelter in its widespreading branches. 
 So also they tell us that the church grew to 
 such an extent that its branches spread all 
 over the earth, and the nations and peoples 
 of the earth like birds fly to the church for 
 security and shelter. We readily admit that 
 the Church of Christ has grown remarkably, 
 and when we consider how small and insignifi- 
 cant was the beginning of the church, we ad- 
 mit that like the mustard tree, the church 
 has attained to an abnormal growth. We 
 also admit that a great multitude of uncon- 
 verted people are to be found in the church 
 today many of whom are (like the un- 
 clean birds of the parable) roosting in the 
 church, settling down in her branches, seek- 
 ing no other object than security and shelter 
 from suspicion. 
 
 If this parable of the mustard tree is in- 
 tended to illustrate the marvelous growth of 
 the church; then the Mustard tree is the 
 church and the birds that roost in the tree 
 are the converts that have been brought into 
 the church. Notice as we compare scripture 
 with scripture that birds always represent 
 that which is unclean. In the parable of the 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE MUSTARD SEED 51 
 
 Sower the birds that swooped down and de- 
 voured the good seed which had fallen by the 
 wayside are not angels of good, but instru- 
 ments of evil. In Genesis 15:11 we have the 
 picture of Abraham driving away the unclean 
 birds that sought to devour the sacrifice on 
 the altar, which sacrifice was the type of the 
 atoning work of Christ which He wrought 
 for us on the Cross. The birds in this para- 
 ble clearly represent the unconverted people 
 who are coming into the church and putting 
 on the outward form of Christian profession 
 to gain some selfish purpose. 
 
 B3' nature the mustard is an herb and 
 not a tree. The particular mustard tree de- 
 scribed in the parable was a monstrosity, 
 something abnormal which not only became 
 greater than all herbs, but greater than its 
 own species. From this then w r e are forced 
 to the conclusion, that if the Savior is using 
 the parable of the mustard tree to describe 
 the external growth of the churchy then the 
 church must be a monstrosity which has 
 attained to an abnormal growth. When we 
 turn to scripture we find that the church is 
 the bride and Christ is the bridegroom. Rev. 
 21:9 and in Eph. 1:22,23 we find that Paul 
 
52 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 speaks of the Church as the body of Christ. 
 Therefore since that which is affirmed of the 
 Church is also affirmed of Christ: those who 
 say that the mustard tree in the parable rep- 
 resents the church are forced to take the po- 
 sition that the blessed Lord himself the Head 
 of the church is perverted and abnormal in 
 His personality. 
 
 If the parable of the mustard seed does 
 not represent the growth of the church what 
 does it represent? The first two parables 
 (the Sower and the tares in the field) de- 
 scribe the beginning of the kingdom and the 
 next two parables (the mustard seed and the 
 leaven) describe the external and the internal 
 growth of the kingdom. .The church we re- 
 peat is not the kingdom although the church 
 is in the kingdom. Every church has an in- 
 fluence, but every person over whom the 
 church has an influence is not in the church; 
 this vast domain (CHRISTENDOM) where 
 the name of Christ is known and honored is 
 the kingdom and the parable of the mustard 
 tree describes the external growth of that 
 kingdom. 
 
 How did the Kingdom attain such an 
 abnormal growth as that which is described 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE MUSTARD SEED 53 
 
 in the parable of the mustard seed? The ab- 
 normal growth of the Kingdom is the result 
 of man's setting aside the divine plan and 
 substituting his own plan for the advance- 
 ment and upbuilding of the Kingdom. Thus 
 through the manipulation of men the King- 
 dom develops into that which like the mus- 
 tard tree is perverted and of abnormal 
 growth. Away back in the early history of 
 the kingdom, yes even from the very begin- 
 ning when the Master was preaching the 
 Kingdom, we find that the disciples instead 
 of being clothed upon with humility, were 
 ever asking "who is the greatest among us?" 
 *' Which of us will sit at the right hand of the 
 King?" In the early history of the church 
 the same spirit of self seeking is perpetually 
 cropping out (I Peter 5:3.) In the fourth 
 century under the reign of Constantine the 
 Church became a great state institution; 
 many now came into the Church who pro- 
 fessed Christ but who possessed no faith in 
 Him. They sought the security and shelter 
 the Kingdom afforded for various politic and 
 diplomatic reasons. Thus the church and 
 Kingdom of Christ was greatly strengthened 
 in a material way, until it finally attained 
 
54 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 that abnormal growth described in the para- 
 ble of the mustard seed. 
 
 PERSONAL APPLICATION: As we step 
 onward and upward into the Master's King- 
 dom let us not aim at greatness or the pro- 
 motion of self. Let us not be found asking 
 "Who is to be the greatest among us?" Or 
 "Who is to sit at the right hand of the 
 King?" Let us rather emulate the spirit of 
 the Master, who took upon himself the form 
 of a servant and was ever known as the 
 meek and lowly Jesus. 
 
 In our efforts to advance and establish 
 the Kingdom of Christ we are not to use 
 the methods of the world. In the world the 
 meek and lowly are pushed aside to make 
 room for the high and the mighty. The world 
 advances its interests b}^ craft and cunning 
 and diplomacy. The servants of Jesus are to 
 be wise as serpents, but we are to exercise 
 that wisdom which is as harmless as the 
 dove. 
 
 When the building up of any world enter- 
 prise is considered, we often hear men say, 
 1 'we must first have so much capital, and we 
 must have so many men of influence to back 
 this enterprise," Likewise when the ad- 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE MUSTARD SEED 55 
 
 vancement of the King's business is being 
 considered, we often hear men say, "we must 
 first have so much money and we must have 
 the names of so many persons of influence 
 back of this enterprise." Thus men often 
 leave the Lord Jesus out altogether and for- 
 get that it is His kingdom they are seeking 
 to advance. His kingdom is not of this 
 world neither can His kingdom be built up 
 by any world method. Whenever we at- 
 tempt to build up the Master's kingdom by 
 any world method, then we see that the 
 growth which results is perverted and ab- 
 normal. 
 
 In the XI chapter of Romans we read of 
 a tree which is to grow up and spread its 
 branches over the whole earth, This tree for 
 the present is cut down, its strength is brok- 
 en, its branches lie scattered upon the ground, 
 its glory is departed. This tree is Israel, the 
 chosen people of God. The nation of Israel 
 sinned steadily, obstinately turned her face 
 from the light and truth in Christ Jesus, so 
 God cut down the tree (Israel) and her 
 branches are now scattered among the na- 
 tions of the earth. The glory which Israel 
 once had, is now s:iven to the Gentile races 
 
56 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 and today, the same apostasy which de- 
 stroyed Israel is now beginning to work in 
 the church and we behold all Christendom af- 
 fected by it. "Hath God cast away His peo- 
 ple Israel?" No, in the end of the age apos- 
 tate Christendom the great and mighty tree 
 of perverted and abnormal growth will be 
 cut down; which by that time will "have be- 
 come the habitation of demons and a hold of 
 every unclean spirit, and a hold of every un- 
 clean and hated bird: 1 ^ (Rev. 18:2) Behold 
 even now the axe is laid at the root of the 
 tree "if God spared not the natural branches, 
 take heed lest He spare not thee." 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 The Parable of the Leavened Meal 
 
 Matthew 13:33 
 
 Another parable spake he unto them; the 
 kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which 
 a woman took, and hid in three measures of 
 meal, till it was all leavened. 
 
 THE PARABLE OF THE LEAVEN 
 
 As we enter into the study of this parable 
 of the leaven, we notice at the very outset 
 that two interpretations of this parable pre- 
 sent themselves to claim our careful consider- 
 ation. Which of these two interpretations 
 shall we accept? Let this rule guide us in 
 our choice. Let us not accept any interpre- 
 tation that may be popular and almost 
 universally accepted, simply because of its 
 popularity. Nor let us reject that interpre- 
 tation which is unpopular and is almost uni- 
 versally rejected, simply because of its unpop- 
 ularity. The popular idea is not always 
 
 57 
 
58 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 right and the unpopular idea is not always 
 wrong. Mav the SPIRIT sruide us into all 
 Truth. 
 
 Again we notice four points of main im- 
 portance in this parable. The meal, the 
 woman, the leaven and the result of the 
 mingling of the leaven with the meal, and of 
 these four the most prominent is the Leaven. 
 
 Of the two interpretations of this parable, 
 the most POPULAR is this: the leaven is said 
 to represent the Gospel, the woman is said to 
 represent the church, then the woman (the 
 church) takes the leaven which is said to rep- 
 resent the Gospel and mixes it with the meal 
 which is said to represent the whole human 
 race and so they tell us that "the leaven of 
 the Gosper 1 is to continue working upon the 
 human family until the whole mass is leav- 
 ened, or the entire human family is converted. 
 
 We cannot accept this interpretation, 
 even though it be the most popular, for two 
 reasons. (1) Because this interpretation of 
 the parable of the leaven is a direct contra- 
 diction of the teaching of all the other pre- 
 ceding parables. If the leaven represents the 
 Gospel, and the woman represents the church, 
 and the three measures of meal represents 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE LEAVENED MEAL 59 
 
 humanity then the object of this parable is to 
 teach us that the power of the Gospel through 
 the agency of the church is to so work upon 
 men, that finally the whole human race is to 
 be converted. This theory although widely 
 spread and almost universally accepted 
 throughout Christendom is in direct contra- 
 diction to the teaching of the parables of the 
 Kingdom and the Scriptures in general. In 
 the parable of the tares in the field, we have 
 seen how that the wheat and the tares (the 
 sons of the Kingdom and the sons of the Evil 
 one) are to grow up together until the end of 
 the age. A mixed condition of good and evil 
 is to continue in the world to the end of the 
 age; all of which is plainly in direct opposition 
 to the popular theory of world conversion in 
 this age. 
 
 Again if this parable of the leaven teaches 
 us that the power of the Gospel, through the 
 instrumentality of the church, is to work up- 
 on humanity, until the whole human family 
 is converted in this age; then we are forced to 
 the conclusion that the Gospel is not making 
 very much headway. Is there to be found a 
 single nation, city, nay is there a single 
 village, or hamlet to be found in all the wide, 
 
60 THE 5KVBN PAR\BL1- 
 
 wide world where every man, woman and 
 child is evangelized. For over 1900 years 
 the Gospel has been preached and yet the evil 
 is still in the world, the tares are still grow- 
 ing among the wheat. Is the Gospel then a 
 failure? By no means. For the Savior 
 clearly teaches us in the parable of the tares 
 in the wheat, that we are not to look for a 
 world wide conversion in this age; but are 
 rather to find a mixture of good and evil pre- 
 vailing in the world to the end of the age. 
 Shall the Son of Man find faith on the earth? 
 The second reason why we do not accept the 
 popular interpretation of this parable is this: 
 according to the popular idea, leaven is the 
 type of good, whereas we maintain that a 
 comparative study of Scripture shows very 
 clearly that leaven is everywhere taken as the 
 type of evil. A careful study of the Old Testa- 
 ment Scriptures clearly reveals the fact that 
 leaven is always taken as the type of evil. 
 Leaven was excluded from every burnt offer- 
 ing that was presented to the Lord. When 
 the devout Jew was about to keep the feast 
 of unleavened bread, he first searched every 
 nook and corner of his house that not a single 
 morsel of bread containing leaven be found 
 
- --. - - - - - £ 
 
 >/evi/. 
 
 is the type of evil. Outside rfits use in this 
 
 parable, we find that our Lord uses the word 
 leaven three times and each time it is used in 
 ciiinec*::: :: vr:~;: z':\:..z vr:::.".: :s t ':'.'. I'.;.:: 12: 
 1 "Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees 
 which is hypocrisy." Matthew 16:6-13 here 
 
 and that the Savior warns the disciples 
 i^Air.s: ".:e \i:-rr^:: :: :i:e r::::.nsees a::1 Sal- 
 ducees; and in Mark B:15 He charged them, 
 
 ing, take heed, beware of the leaven of the 
 Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.' ' Xow 
 what was the leaven of the Pharisees and the 
 leaven of the Saddncees and the leaven of 
 Herod? it anything good? Xo. The 
 
 leaven of the Pharisees was their hjrpocr: 
 They made much of the letter of the law, but 
 they utterly ignored the spirit of the law. 
 The leaven of the Sadducees was rationalism, 
 they denied the doctrine of the ressureetion 
 of our Lord and in many other respects their 
 teaching tended toward materialism and 
 rationalism. The leaven of Herod was the 
 pageantry and magnificent display of power 
 
62 THE SEVEN PARABI.ES 
 
 by which Herod ever strove to conceal from 
 the eyes of the people the weakness of his 
 own character and the crumbling foundation 
 which supported his tottering throne. 
 
 When we turn to the epistles of Paul, we 
 find that here too the word leaven is used to 
 represent that w-hich is evil. In I Cor. 5:6-8 
 we find that leaven is used as the type of e vil, 
 when tolerated within the church. In Gal. 
 5:9 we see that leaven is used as the type of 
 formalism. Thus it becomes very plain that 
 throughout all Scripture, whether of the Old 
 or New Testament, leaven is taken as the 
 type of that which is evil and w^e cannot be- 
 lieve that it is the type of good in the parable 
 of the leaven. 
 
 Let us now proceed to the consideration 
 of the second interpretation of this parable, 
 which interpretation, though unpopular, is 
 not to be rejected because of its unpopularity. 
 Let us now in accordance with our compara- 
 tive study of Scripture consider leaven as the 
 type of evil. If leaven is the type of evil, then 
 what does the meal represent which is cor- 
 rupted by the leaven? Where does meal or 
 flour come from? It is the product of the 
 wheat (the good seed which was sowed by 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE LEAVENED MEAL 63 
 
 the Sower of the first parable, Christ Jesus 
 our Savior). This meal is wholesome and 
 good, it stands for the Truth in Christ and 
 His Word. When the leaven is mixed with 
 the meal, it begins to work until the whole 
 mass is changed and influenced in a most 
 subtle manner by its nrysterious working. 
 Thus our Lord teaches us in the parable of 
 the leaven: that error and evil doctrine will 
 corrupt the good meal (the doctrine of Christ). 
 First the church was made into a great state 
 institution; this outward growth of the King- 
 dom of Christ becoming more perverted and 
 abnormal, is taught in the parable of the 
 mustard tree and the internal growth of the 
 Kingdom is taught in the parable of the 
 leaven. 
 
 The woman in this parable represents the 
 apostate church. Her evil doctrine like the 
 leaven is corrupting the meal, the Truth in 
 Christ. The leaven works silently, secretly, 
 its working is a great mystery. Paul speaks 
 of its working in II Thes. 2:7 "for the 
 mystery of lawlessness doth already work." 
 Thus we see that the Truth in Christ became 
 corrupt by the introduction of error very 
 early in the age and like leaven, the mystery 
 
64 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 of lawlessness is still at work, and will con- 
 tinue to work until all Christendom is per- 
 meated with its corrupting influence. 
 
 When w T e remember that the leaven has 
 been exerting its corrupting influence 
 throughout Christendom for so long, we 
 sometimes w^onder that the whole lump has 
 not been leavened and the Truth in Christ 
 utterly overwhelmed by the power of the evil 
 one. We should remember however that 
 when our risen Lord ascended to the Father 
 in Heaven, He did not leave us alone, but He 
 promised His Holy Spirit to them that obey 
 Him and revelation and experience alike 
 tell us that the promise of the Father has 
 been verified. In this evil age, when there is 
 so much error and deceit the Holy Spirit 
 guides us into all Truth. He enables us to 
 distinguish the Truth from error and He 
 guides us into all Truth. He ever takes the 
 things of Christ and shows them to us. 
 
 Let us now sum up the teachings of the 
 parable of the leaven. The leaven is the type 
 of error or evil. The woman represents apos- 
 tate Christianity, the meal represents the 
 Truth of Christ and His Word and the action 
 of the woman mixing the leaven with the 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE LEAVENED MEAL 65 
 
 meal and allowing it to leaven the whole, is 
 the type of the internal growth of the king- 
 dom. Thus we see according to the teach- 
 ings of the parables of the mustard tree and 
 the parable of the leaven that the kingdom 
 or Christendom, both as to its external and 
 internal growth develops into a condition 
 which is perverted and abnormal in the end 
 of the age. 
 
 PERSONAL APPLICATION: Leaven or 
 error of which it is the type is silent, secret, 
 and mysterious in its working. The Truth 
 in Christ Jesus, however, is open and plainly 
 held up for the investigation and acceptance 
 of all. The gospel invitation is ever extend- 
 ed: "Come and see." The Spirit and the 
 Bride say come, and let him that heareth say 
 come, and whosoever will let him come and 
 drink of the water of life freely." The blessed 
 Master himself said "in secret have I said 
 nothing.' ' He also taught His disciples to 
 walk in the light as He is in the light. We 
 are to let the light of our lives to shine so 
 that men may see our good works and glori- 
 fy the Father in heaven. If our lives are tru- 
 ly hid with Christ in God we need not fear 
 the light. 
 
66 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 Leaven is corrupting and contaminating 
 in its influence. The Truth in Christ Jesus is 
 purifying and tends to preserve and make 
 wholesome. We are told that "the fear of 
 the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. "We 
 are also told "that the fear of the Lord 
 is clean" The Lord Jesus also says "ye 
 are the salt of the earth." Salt we know 
 ever exercises a wholesome and purifying in- 
 fluence. It is an antiseptic, it arrests decay. 
 The Lord's people, in whose lives His Truth 
 is thoroughly incorporated are as salt in the 
 earth. They exercise a purifying and whole- 
 some influence upon corrupt and unregener- 
 ate humanity. The elements of decay are in 
 everything about us. The Truth in Christ 
 Jesus is the only antiseptic that can arrest 
 the decay of the leaven of unrighteousness. 
 May our lives ever give out this purifying 
 and wholesome influence. 
 
 The leaven is persistent in it's working. 
 It keeps on working until the whole mass is 
 permeated with it's corrupting influence. So 
 we as disciples of the Lord are to be energetic 
 in our work. The salt is also persistent and 
 vigorous in it's action. It keeps pushing it's 
 way through every fiber of the mass that is 
 
THE PAEABLE OF THE I/EAVENED MEAL 67 
 
 salted, until the whole is salted. Let us, who 
 through the cleansing blood of Christ are 
 purged from our sins, never weary in well- 
 doing, for in due season we shall reap if we 
 faint not. 
 
 The leaven makes a great show of its 
 work: that is, after the leaven is introduced 
 into the meal it causes the mass to swell up 
 and appear much larger than it really is. So 
 Satan, who is swollen with rage, because his 
 time is short and the end is drawing near, 
 causes those who take up w r ith evil doctrine 
 "to utter great swelling words of vanity/ ' 
 (2 Pet. 2:18; Jude 1:16.) The love of God in 
 Christ Jesus, however, does not tend to puff 
 men up or cause them to behave in a unseem- 
 ly manner. I Cor. 13:5, "love is not puffed 
 up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh 
 not it's own." Let us not fear the great 
 swelling words of the Evil one, the fire of 
 God's wrath wall check and utterly destroy 
 his work, "Therefore believers ought to be 
 steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in 
 the w^ork of the Lord." 
 
CHAPTER V 
 The Parable of the Hidden Treasure 
 
 Matthew 13:44 
 
 The kingdom of heaven is like unto a 
 treasure hidden in the field; which a man 
 found, and hid; and in his joy he goeth and 
 selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. 
 
 THE PARABLE OF THE HIDDEN 
 TREASURE. 
 
 Our blessed Lord has now declared four 
 parables of the kingdom unto the multitudes. 
 As soon as He has finished the declaration of 
 the fourth parable (the leaven) Matthew 
 13:36, "he left the multitudes and went into 
 the house" and there, with His disciples 
 gathered about Him, He gives them the in- 
 terpretation of the first two parables and al- 
 so declares the remaining parables of the 
 kingdom. We can readily discover a decided 
 difference between the first four parables and 
 the parables that follow. In the first four 
 
 69 
 
70 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 parables, the Savior is addressing a mixed 
 audience, most of whom were curious specta- 
 tors without faith in Christ. They could on- 
 ly see with the natural eye and hear with the 
 natural ear, for them the eye and ear of faith 
 and Spirit were as yet unopened. To them 
 the Savior speaks only of such things as they 
 could understand in their unregenerate con- 
 dition, such as the planting and development 
 of the Kingdom, the abnormal growth of the 
 kingdom because of the manipulation of man, 
 the corrupting of the inward working of the 
 kingdom because of perversion of the Truth. 
 In the remaining parables, however, the Sav- 
 ior is addressing His disciples only, as they 
 gather around Him in the seclusion of the 
 house. "The secrets of the Lord are with 
 them that fear Him." And now we see that 
 the Lord begins to unfold before His disciples 
 that gather about His feet in faith believing, 
 the secret plan and purpose of God the Father 
 for the whole world in this age. 
 
 In this parable we discover four points of 
 main importance: the man, the field, the 
 treasure hidden in the field, and the purchase 
 of the field and all that it contains. As we 
 proceed with the interpretation of this para- 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE HIDDEN TREASURE 71 
 
 ble we find there are two interpretations, the 
 one is quite popular and is almost universal- 
 ly taught and accepted throughout Christen- 
 dom. The other interpretation is unpopular 
 and almost universal^ rejected throughout 
 Christendom. We shall discuss both inter- 
 pretations but let this rule guide us in our 
 choice, not to accept an interpretation be- 
 cause of its popularity, or reject an interpre- 
 tation because of its unpopularity. The 
 popular idea is not always right and the un- 
 popular idea is not always wrong. 
 
 The popular interpretation: According 
 to the popular interpretation, the treasure is 
 the type of salvation or of Christ, the man 
 who sells all he has, to purchase the field is 
 the sinner seeking eternal life. Such an inter- 
 pretation though ever so popular is a direct 
 contradiction of the Savior's teaching in the 
 preceding parables and the Holy Scripture in 
 general. 
 
 (1) We find a man (a Sower) mentioned 
 in the first parable and according to the Sav- 
 ior's interpretation "the Sower of the seed is 
 the Son of Man." Likewise in the second 
 parable the Sower of the good seed is the 
 Son of Man. In the parable of the mustard 
 
72 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 seed, the man who took the good seed and 
 sowed it is the Son of Man. There never is 
 the slightest confusion of ideas, or contradic- 
 tion of statement, in all the sayings of Jesus 
 and we cannot see how the man referred to 
 in the parable of the hidden treasure can rep- 
 resent the sinner, while the man referred to 
 in the first three parables according to the 
 Savior's own interpretation is the Son of 
 Man. 
 
 (2) If the hidden treasure is salvation in 
 Christ Jesus, and the man who sells all he 
 has is the sinner seeking salvation, then we 
 are led to believe that the sinner can make 
 atonement for his sin by selling all that he 
 has. This however is a direct contradiction 
 to the teaching of the Savior in the preceding 
 parables and of the Scriptures in general. 
 The sinner seeking salvation cannot secure 
 pardon for sin by selling all or a part of any- 
 thing he may possess. The sinner is expect- 
 ed to forsake his evil ways, and yet no 
 amount of morality or deeds of righteousness 
 can secure salvation or pardon for sin. Gal. 
 2:16. "By the works of the law shall no 
 flesh be justified." We are not justified 
 through the works of the law but through 
 
THE PARABLE OK THE HIDDEN TREASURE 73 
 
 faith in Jesus Christ. Since Christ died for 
 us, we are no longer under the law, we are 
 under grace. The dispensation of the law, 
 began with the giving of the law to Moses 
 and ends with the crucifixion of Christ. 
 When God gave the law to Moses God 
 first reminded Israel of their marvelous de- 
 liverance from the house of bondage in Egypt 
 because of His grace; and then he offers them 
 the law. It was their privilege to plead for 
 grace instead of the law. However after the 
 law was given in their persumption they 
 answered: Ex. 19:8, "and all the people 
 answered together and said, all that Jehovah 
 hath spoken we will do." Consequently 
 God's command through all the dispensation 
 of the law was "this do and live." Once dur- 
 ng the dispensation of the law a self right- 
 eous Pharisee came to Jesus saying: Mark 
 10:17, "Good Master what shall I do that I 
 may inherit eternal life?" and to him the 
 Master said, knowing full well how the rich 
 young ruler prided himself on his strict ob- 
 servance of the law and also just where he 
 had failed to keep the law, the Master said, 
 v. 21, "Go sell whatever thou hast and give 
 to the poor." But we are to remember that 
 
74 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 this young ruler came to the Master during 
 the dispensation of the law, with the works 
 of the law and the Savior answers him as 
 one still under the law. But now, Rom. 
 6:14-15, "we are not under the law we are 
 under grace.' ' With the crucifixion of Christ, 
 the demands of the law are forever satisfied. 
 4 'Jesus paid it all." The debt we never could 
 have paid was cancelled with His precious 
 blood. When He died on the cross the dis- 
 pensation of the law is ended. A new dispen- 
 sation begins (the dispensation of grace) 
 which continues until the coming of the Lord. 
 In this dispensation the sinner seeking eter- 
 nal life is not required to sell all or part of 
 anything he may possess to inherit eternal 
 life. The purchase of otir salvation has been 
 made once for all through the shedding of 
 Jesus' blood. Nor can the sinner obtain par- 
 don for his sin by deeds of morality and 
 works of righteousness. Salvation is now 
 no longer secured by the works of the law, 
 although the law is still to be kept, but sal- 
 vation comes through faith in Christ, and 
 even this faith which saves is the gift of God, 
 lest any should boast. We cannot purchase 
 this salvation we have in Christ Jesus, it is 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE HIDDEN TREASURE /5 
 
 God's free gift, without money and without 
 price. God offers it to everyone. ''Nothing 
 in my hands I bring simply t o Thy cross I 
 cling." The Christian is expected to make a 
 surrender and a sacrifice of self. But the 
 Christian's surrender and sacrifice of self is 
 not the condition upon which we receive or 
 purchase our salvation; it is rather the result 
 of our salvation. 
 
 We really make no sacrifice or surrender, 
 until we have accepted Christ and then in 
 proportion as we yield up ourselves to the 
 influence of His spirit, the work of surrender 
 and sacrifice begins in real earnest and con- 
 tinues to the end. Thus Paul says, Phil. 
 3:8,10, "Yea, verily, and I count all things 
 to be loss for the excellency of the knowledge 
 of Christ Jesus my Lord; for whom I suffered 
 the loss of all things, and do count them but 
 refuse, that I may gain Christ, (this was af- 
 ter Paul's conversion) that I may know Him 
 and the power of His ressurection, and the 
 fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed 
 unto His death." 
 
 Thus we see that any interpretation, 
 however popular, which represents the hid- 
 den treasure as typical of salvation in Christ 
 
76 THE SEVEN PARABI.ES 
 
 Jesus, and also represents the sinner as secur- 
 ing pardon for his sin by selling all he has; is 
 contradictory to the teaching of Christ and 
 is a most nauseating mixture of law and 
 grace. 
 
 (3) In all the preceding parables the 
 word field means "the world. " Now if the 
 man in this parable is the sinner seeking sal- 
 vation and the hidden treasure is salvation 
 in Christ, then according to the parable the 
 sinner must sell all he has and buy the 
 WORLD (field,) which purchase is manifestly 
 impossible. Having seen the absurdity of 
 the popular interpretation, let us now turn 
 our attention to the second interpretation, 
 which though unpopular, is not to be reject- 
 ed because of its unpopularity. 
 
 The man does not represent the sinner 
 seeking salvation, but Christ seeking the sin- 
 ner, the field is the world. Next we notice 
 that the man in the parable sells all he has 
 and then purchases the field with all the 
 treasure that it contains. What man among 
 men is able to purchase the field, which in 
 this case, is the world, except the Son of Man. 
 How great was the sacrifice that he made to 
 purchase the field. He who was rich in glory 
 
THE PARABI/E OF THE HIDDEN TREASURE 77 
 
 became poor for our sakes, that we through 
 His poverty might be rich. It is the old, old 
 story of Jesus' wonderful love. 
 
 But what is the treasure hidden in the 
 field for which the Lord makes so great sac- 
 rifice? We answer that Israel is the treasure 
 hidden in the field. Ps. 135:4, "for the Lord 
 hath chosen Jacob for Himself and Israel for 
 His peculiar treasure/' Exodus 19:5, "ye 
 shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above 
 all people; for all the earth is mine." Isaiah 
 43:1, "But now thus saith the Lord thatcre- 
 ated thee, Jacob, and He that formed thee, 
 Israel, fear not, for I have redeemed thee; I 
 have called thee by thy name thou art mine." 
 The prophecy of Balaam clearly indicates 
 how precious the nation of Israel is in the 
 sight of God. (Numbers 22-24.) We see here al- 
 so to what a high position of trust and honor 
 God will jQt exalt His chosen people Israel, 
 who for the present are as treasure hidden in 
 the field, scattered and dispersed among the 
 nations of the earth. When our Lord came 
 down from heaven to earth, he purchased the 
 whole world, including His earthly people 
 Israel who are as treasure hidden in the field. 
 In fact we are told "He came to His own 
 
78 THE SEVEN PARABLZ5 
 
 (Israel) and His own received Him not. 11 
 Again in John 11:51, "He died for that na- 
 tion." The Lord died tor the nation of Israel, 
 but Israel rejected the Savior and so now sal- 
 vation is come to the Gentiles, for as many 
 as receive Him, to them is given the power to 
 be the sons of God, even them that believe on 
 His name. 
 
 "Hath God cast away His people?" Xo. 
 Israel has been redeemed by the precious 
 blood of Christ. For the present the results 
 of the Lord's sacrifice are not yet apparent. 
 During this dispensation, while the Lord is 
 absent from the earth, Israel remains in 
 darkness, her eyes are blinded, her strength 
 is broken, her glory departed; she is as treas- 
 ure hidden in the world wide field. But when 
 the Lord comes to earth again and "the full- 
 ness of the Gentiles is come;" then the Lord 
 will claim His inheritance. He will dig up 
 the hidden treasure from the field, and all 
 Israel rejoicing in His salvation will sing, 
 "Blessed is He that cometh in the name of 
 the Lord." 
 
 PERSONAL APPLICATION. — In this 
 parable we have the picture of Christ seeking 
 the sinner, first the Jew and then the Gentile. 
 
H : vr true this is. Ht s :ucrht us an:: :■: 
 a:::", brought us backint : the fold. '"Here:: 
 love not that vre lived S : :: but that Hz drst 
 loved us a:::: ^aue bis Sin : : lie :■: r us 
 
 Israel is God's chisen u:;:.: tbe treas- 
 ure, hiffen for tbe present : r ; :n tbe eves :f 
 the world. Let ns not abuse them, :r curse 
 them, or persecute them. Though :le 
 by the world and dreadfully persecute 
 God still loves them, sni thiugh lie r 
 the nations t : punish Israel '::e:aus-e :f their 
 rejection of the her:: v. d: : ":: i tight them Yvith 
 His blood, jet God hath not cast away His 
 
 come. He tvill ^matl" eualt an:; e 'l : rifr Isra-1. 
 Let us take heed b : : - vre even sneak :: them. 
 Numbers 24:9, "blessed be every one that 
 
 ? c . a - a e c . z s . ^ — — . 'i - z\ r" r a "< z _• r > n c 
 
 ;e ::' T ir.;s;.'.e~: the-,- shah tr.-ster th. : 
 
 love thee. P'ea.c be -Othia tOr v/ahs ?.zz 
 
 prosperity within tap palaces. etc." Isaiah 
 
 62:6.7. "Ye that are Jehovah'; reraerabrar- 
 
 a t r a i s c i u t n e e a rt n . 
 
 During this a ee. the fisnensarlon :•:" srrace. 
 
80 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 Israel is kept hidden in the field. The glory 
 that Israel once had, is now given to the Gen- 
 tiles. Thus did God bring judgment upon 
 Israel for her wilfulness and unbelief. Today 
 apostate Christendom is fast approaching a 
 judgment, which no doubt will exceed in 
 every respect the judgment which rests on 
 Israel now. When the time of the Gentiles is 
 full then Jehovah will lift up and highly ex- 
 alt His chosen people. Romans 11:25-28, 
 "For I would not, brethren, have you ignor- 
 ant of this mystery, lest ye be wise in your 
 own conceits, that a hardening in part hath 
 befallen Israel, until the fulness of the Gen- 
 tiles be come in; and so all Israel shall be 
 saved; even as it is written. There shall 
 come out of Zion the Deliverer; He shall turn 
 away ungodliness from Jacob; and this is my 
 covenant unto them, when I shall take away 
 their sins." 
 
 Let us then remember that this parable 
 teaches us that Christ came to earth seeking 
 to save the sinner, first the Jew and then the 
 Gentile. Israel is "the hidden treasure;' ' hid- 
 den for the present because she rejected the 
 Lord, who to purchase her redemption shed 
 His precious blood. God hath not cast away 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE HIDDEN TREASURE 81 
 
 His people Israel, but when the fulness of the 
 Gentiles is come, He will restore Israel to her 
 former position of glory. 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 The Parable of the Pearl of Great Price 
 
 Matthew 13:45, 46 
 
 Again the kingdom of heaven is like unto 
 a man that is a merchant seeking goodly 
 pearls: and having found one pearl of great 
 price, he went and sold all that he had and 
 bought it. 
 
 THE PARABLE OF THE PEARL OF 
 GREAT PRICE 
 
 This parable of the Pearl of Great Price is 
 in many respects quite similar to the preced- 
 ing parable of the hidden treasure, and yet, a 
 careful study and comparison of these two 
 parables, shows us that the parable of the 
 pearl gives us additional truth and is in many 
 respects quite different from the preceding 
 parable. 
 
 Again do we find four circumstances brief- 
 ly related in this parable. (1) A merchant- 
 man seeking goodly pearls, (2) a merchant- 
 
 . 83 
 
84 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 man finding one pearl of great price, (3) the 
 merchantman selling- all he has, (4) the mer- 
 chant buying the pearl. 
 
 The popular interpretation of this parable 
 is as follows: the merchant seeking pearls is 
 represented as the sinner seeking salvation, 
 the one pearl of great price is said to represent 
 salvation in Christ. We will not stop to dis- 
 cuss an interpretation, which however popu- 
 lar, is so plainly contradictory to the teach- 
 ing of our Lord in the preceding parables and 
 to the Scriptures in general. 
 
 The second interpretation is as follows: 
 the merchant seeking pearls represents Christ 
 seeking the sinner, and to secure this salva- 
 tion, Christ sells all He has, even to the lay- 
 ing down of His life. But if the merchant 
 seeking pearls represents Christ seeking the 
 sinner, what does the pearl represent? The 
 Hidden Treasure of the preceding parable rep- 
 resents Israel, the chosen people of God, and 
 the Pearl of Great Price represents the church. 
 Inasmuch as the one pearl of great price is 
 the most prominent fact in this parable, we 
 shall find that a careful study of the facts 
 concerning pearl itself will be of great assist- 
 ance in arriving at a proper understanding of 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE PEARI, OF GREAT PRICE 85 
 
 the parable of the pearl. Let us then consid- 
 er the following questions: (1) What is pearl? 
 (2) How is pearl formed? (3) What is it used 
 for and what is it's value? (4) What is pearl 
 the symbol of? (1) What is pearl? We all 
 know that pearl is a precious gem. The 
 scientist tells us that the pearl is carbonate 
 of lime, which is the same as chalk. The 
 pearl is different from all other gems or prec- 
 ious stones. The emerald, the ruby, the dia- 
 mond, etc., these all, are inorganic substances 
 or compounds. That is: life was not involved 
 in the process of their formation. But the 
 pearl is an organic compound, that is: Life 
 was involved in the process of its formation 
 and in this respect, it is different from all 
 other jems or precious stones, (2) How is 
 the pearl formed? The pearl is formed with- 
 in the shell of a living clam or oyster. Some- 
 times a grain of sand or some other foreign 
 substance works its way into or rather be- 
 tween the oyster shell, causing continual irri- 
 tation and annoyance to the soft and tender 
 mollusk within the shell. Next the secretion 
 of the nacre, or mother-of-pearl begins thus 
 the foreign substance is covered and the for- 
 mation of the pearl begins, layer upon layer, 
 
86 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 until that which was the source of continual 
 pain and annoyance, has been transformed 
 into a gem of great beauty and value. " The 
 tears of the oyster are found in the beauty of 
 the pearl.' ' (3) The value of the pearl. The 
 pearl as a precious gem is much sought for 
 and is of great value. In some oriental 
 countries no one but the king is allowed to 
 wear pearls of great price. However, al- 
 though from time immemorial pearls were 
 regarded as of great value among the gentile 
 races, yet little if any value was attached to 
 them by the ancient Hebrew people. Job 28: 
 18 "No mention shall be made of coral or 
 pearl.' ' (4) Whether from its appearance, or 
 the manner in which the pearl is formed, the 
 pearl has ever been the symbol of purity and 
 innocence. Keeping these facts in our mind, 
 that deal with the pearl in a general way, let 
 us now turn our attention to the interpreta- 
 tion of the parable of the Pearl of Great Price; 
 remembering that the merchant seeking 
 goodly pearls is Christ seeking the sinner, 
 and that the one pearl of great price for which 
 Christ gives all, is the church. 
 
 In the preceding parable, Christ reveals 
 the secret plan and purpose of the Father for 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE PEARL OF GREAT PRICE 87 
 
 His chosen people Israel, who during this dis- 
 pensation of grace are as treasure hidden in 
 the world wide field. In this parable of the 
 pearl, the Lord Jesus explains "the mystery" 
 of the church, the pearl of great price, which 
 He is forming now. During this evil age the 
 real value and great beauty of the church can 
 never be discovered. Evil is in the world, the 
 tares are growing among the wheat, the 
 leaven of unrighteousness is everywhere at 
 w r ork spreading its corrupting and contamin- 
 ating influence throughout the whole King- 
 dom. Sometimes we exclaim How long! O! 
 Lord! How long! Why tarry the wheels of 
 His chariot! And yet all the while, unhind- 
 ered by the wiles of the enemy, or the plans 
 of evil men, the Lord Jesus is calling out His 
 chosen ones to Himself. One by one He is 
 gathering them together out of the dark, 
 swelling sea of sinful humanity, and when at 
 last the number is complete, and the last one 
 of the blood-bought throng is gathered in, 
 then the King Himself will come to take His 
 own to Himself in glory, and then shall all 
 the splendor and beauty of the glorified 
 church (the pearl of great price) flash forth, 
 and shine forever resplendent in the bosom of 
 
88 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 the Father. 
 
 Of the four circumstances briefly related 
 in the parable of the pearl, the first is this: 
 " the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man 
 that is a merchant seeking goodly pearls/' 
 From this we see that the merchant of the 
 parable goes about with a definite purpose in 
 view, and that purpose is to find goodly 
 pearls. When, therefore, the merchant finds 
 at last a pearl of great price, we see that the 
 discovery of that pearl is not accidental. 
 Now the merchant seeking pearls, represents 
 Christ seeking the sinner; while the pearl of 
 great price is the church of the living God 
 built up of believers, who have been bought 
 with the precious blood of Christ. Thus we 
 see that the Lord Jesus, like the merchant in 
 the parable, came into the world with a defi- 
 nite purpose in view. This purpose was re- 
 vealed to man before the Savior's birth 
 Matt. 1:21 "thou shalt call his name Jesus 
 for He shall save His people from their sins." 
 Christ came into the world to save sinners. 
 To raise men up out of the degredation and 
 filth of sin and transform them into that 
 which would be forever glorious and most 
 precious in the sight of God, This was the 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE PEARL OF GRE\T PRICE 59 
 
 great purpose which He ever kept before 
 Him, and when at last He discovers in the 
 church the pearl oi great price, we see that 
 the discovery is not accidental, but the result 
 of most definite and diligent searching. It is 
 but the unfolding of the secret plan and pur- 
 pose of God, for those that love Him, ''the 
 mystery which from the beginning of the 
 world hath been hid in God" (Eph. 3:9). 
 How great is this mystery oi God's love here- 
 in revealed! Who can comprehend the height, 
 the depth, the length and br- : The \ :we 
 
 of God, which went out in so great measure 
 for a world dying in sin. that He gave His 
 only begotten Son to die that we might live. 
 Hence the Savior, obedient in all things to 
 the Father's will, left the glories of heaven 
 and came to earth seeking the sinner. Ever 
 keeping this definite purpose in view, that out 
 of the great and innumerable multitude of 
 sinners which He ransomed with His life- 
 blood, He would form a most glorious comp- 
 any into the church of the living God (the one 
 pearl of great price) destined to shine forever 
 resplendent in the beauty of Christ their Re- 
 deemer and King and in all the ages which are 
 to come to show forth the wonders of His love. 
 
90 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 We can now see why the Lord Jesus uses 
 the pearl as the type of the church. (1) The 
 pearl teaches us how and of what the church 
 is formed. In the formation of the pearl, we 
 saw how that both life and pain were in- 
 volved in the process of it's formation. So 
 also with the church, pain and suffering and 
 the laying down of life were involved in the 
 process of it's formation. A grain of sand 
 lodges within the oyster shell, wounding and 
 irritating the tender mollusk w r ithin. Next 
 the secretion of the mother-of-pearl begins, 
 the pearl is formed and the wound is healed. 
 The grain of sand is not the pearl, and yet it 
 is the basis upon and about which the pearl 
 is formed. Considerable time is involved in 
 this process. Layer upon layer of a most 
 brilliant and irridescent material, in which 
 all the colors of the rainbow are blended to- 
 gether, are laid upon the grain of sand and 
 thus the pearl is formed. Now just as the 
 pearl, the gem of rare beauty and great value, 
 is built upon that which was of no value and 
 which caused pain and suffering to the life 
 that formed it; so the church is formed exclu- 
 sively of those, who at one time grieviously 
 pained and wounded Him who " loved us and 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE PEARL OP GREAT PRICE 91 
 
 gave Himself for us." The church of Christ 
 is composed of sinners saved by the grace of 
 God. Is. 53:5, 6 fci He was wounded for our 
 transgressions, he was bruised for our iniqui- 
 ties; the chastisement of our peace was upon 
 Him; and with His stripes we are healed. 
 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have 
 turned every one to his own way; and the 
 Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." 
 He who in the parable is represented as the 
 merchant seeking goodly pearls, came seek- 
 ing us. Even while we were yet in our sins, 
 He loved us. When we accepted Him in faith, 
 He washed us from our sins in His blood. 
 --By the gracious influence of His Holy Spirit 
 we are enabled more and more, to die unto 
 sin and live unto righteousness. Thus will 
 He ever continue to work upon us, transform- 
 ing that which was vile and sinful into that 
 which will be pure and beautiful Eph. 5:27 
 "that He might present the church to Him- 
 self a glorious church, not having spot or 
 wrinkle or any such thing; but that it should 
 be -holy and without blemish." The grain of 
 sand is not the pearl, nor is the sinner the 
 pearl of great price. The pearl of great price 
 ie church) is built up of sinners who have 
 
92 THE SEVEN PARABI.ES 
 
 been made new creatures in Christ Jesus. 
 Who have been raised up out of the mire and 
 filth of sin and made to sit in heavenly places 
 in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He 
 might show the exceeding riches of His grace 
 in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 
 
 In the parable the one pearl which he 
 found at last after most diligent searching 
 was of great price; so great was the price 
 that he sold all that he had to get it. We 
 can understand how precious the church is in 
 the sight of God when we remember how 
 great the price was that He gave for it. 
 Eph. 5:25 " Christ loved the church and gave 
 Himself for it." II Cor. 8:9 "For ye know 
 the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, 
 though He was rich, yet for your sakes He 
 became poor, that ye through His poverty 
 might become rich." Truly He sold all that 
 He had even to the laying down of His life. 
 He emptied Himself of all heavenly glory, 
 came to earth, took upon Himself the form of 
 a servant, ever went about doing good, yet 
 was misunderstood, misrepresented and per- 
 secuted, He who knew no sin was made sin 
 for us. He endured the contradiction of sin- 
 ners, who might have consumed them by the 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE PEARI, OF GREAT PRICE 93 
 
 Word of His power. For us He wore the 
 crown of thorns, and the purple robe of mock 
 royalty. For us He endured all the mockery, 
 the insult and the reviling in silence. For 
 you and me He carried the cross up the steep 
 and stony path of Golgotha's hill. There He 
 was crucified between two thieves. All this 
 He endured and much more, the half of which 
 has never been told. Truly He sold all that 
 He had that by His sacrifice He might re- 
 deem a world from sin and gather together an 
 innumerable company of ransomed souls into 
 one glorious body, presenting them at last 
 faultless before the presence of the Father 
 with exceeding joy. 
 
 The pearl has ever been the symbol of in- 
 nocence and purity and has been ever sought 
 for in the decoration of kings. So it is with 
 the church, the pearl of great price. Once 
 they who are now in the church and are 
 numbered among the sons of God, were sin- 
 ners who dwelt in the filth and the mire and 
 w r ere led about as captives by the w r ill of 
 Satan. Rom. 8:1, 2 " There is now therefore 
 no condemnation to them who are in Christ 
 Jesus, who walk not after the flesh but after 
 the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in 
 
94 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 Christ Jesus has made me free from the law 
 of sin and death.' ' We are now new creat- 
 ures in Christ Jesus. His righteousness, His 
 power. His beanty is laid upon us. His Spirit 
 is working upon us now, He the author and 
 finisher of our faith, though absent now, is 
 silently and swiftly working; shaping and 
 fashioning the pearl of great price. In the 
 end of the age when He comes and the trum- 
 pet of the Lord shall sound, then shall the 
 beauty of the glorified church shine forth and 
 as the pearl of great price be taken up to 
 shine in all it's irridescent beauty: the rain- 
 bow round the throne of God. 
 
 The merchant sold all He had to purchase 
 one pearl, so Christ will unity the church and 
 make it the one pearl of great price. The 
 day will come when the sacramental host, 
 now scattered throughout the world, will be 
 gathered together into one body at His ap- 
 pearing. With joy unspeakable they will 
 take up the harp of praise and join with the 
 song of the angels as they sing "one faith, 
 one Lord, one baptism, one God and Father 
 of us all, who is above all, and through all, 
 and in all." 
 
 PERSONAL APPLICATION: The mer- 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE PEARI, OF GREAT PRICE 95 
 
 chant went about seeking goodly pearls, the 
 Master came into the world to seek the sin- 
 ner and bring him into the fold of God. We 
 should never forget that we have all sinned 
 and come short of the glory of God. That 
 Christ sought us and found us and brought 
 us into the fold. That the church is built up 
 of men who once were vile and sinful, but who 
 now are led by the Spirit of God. That none 
 of us, no not even the best of us, have any 
 cause for boasting, for it is only bv His grace 
 that we are what we are. That it is His 
 power, which has lifted us up into the 
 heavenly places in Christ Jesus. 
 
 The merchant went about with a definite 
 purpose in view: namely to discover and pos- 
 sess the one pearl of great price. So the Lord 
 Jesus ever had and kept the one purpose in 
 view: namely to seek and to save the lost, 
 and out of the great and innumerable comp- 
 any of souls ransomed by His blood to form 
 and fashion that which as the church, would 
 ever be the one pearl of great price, most 
 precious in the sight of God. Even so we as 
 true disciples should have a definite purpose 
 in life. The highest aim and purpose we can 
 keep before us is to live for others. Christ 
 
96 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 gave Himself for others and if we would fol- 
 low in His steps we should enter into the 
 fellowship of His suffering. 
 
 If we truly love the Lord and sincerely 
 desire to serve Him aright, then we will con- 
 nect ourselves w r ith some branch of His 
 church. What though there may be flaws 
 and imperfections in the church visible, we are 
 strengthened in faith as we unite with others 
 in the Lord's work, we are able to accomp- 
 lish more in spreading the Truth and how 
 can we expect to have Him who bought us 
 with His precious blood, openly acknowledge 
 and acquit us in the day of judgment, unless 
 in our lifetime, we as we have opportunity, 
 openly acknowledge Him as our Savior and 
 confess Him before men. 
 
 As members of the church we are to be 
 loyal to our denomination, but we are not to 
 boast about it, or set ourselves up as better, 
 or in any way as superior, to the other de- 
 nominational branches of the church. The 
 day is coming when the trumpet's sound will 
 scatter all the historical differences and tra- 
 ditions that now divide us. Then there will 
 be one faith, one Lord, one baptism, one 
 church. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 The Parable of the Drag Net 
 
 Matthew 13:47-50 
 
 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like un- 
 to a net, that was cast into the sea, and 
 gathered of every kind; which, when it was 
 filled, they drew up on the beach; and they 
 sat down, and gathered the good into ves- 
 sels, but the bad they cast away. So shall 
 it be in the end of the world: the angels shall 
 come forth, and sever the wicked from among 
 the righteous, and shall cast them into the 
 furnace of fire: there shall be the weeping and 
 gnashing of teeth. 
 
 THE PARABLE OF THE DRAG NET 
 
 We have now come to the consideration 
 of the last of the seven parables of the King- 
 dom. In the study of the first of these para- 
 bles (the Sower) we are taken back to the 
 times of the apostles and we are given a de- 
 scription of the beginning of the Kingdom of 
 the heavens after it is committed to the 
 
 97 
 
9^ TKZ SKVEH PAKABLZS 
 
 hands of men. In this last parable (the drag- 
 net) we are given a description of what the 
 end of this dispensation ^vill be like. As we 
 look at the picture held up before us in this 
 parable, we see a great, large net let down 
 into the sea and left there to take in fish of 
 all kinds until it is lull, and then it is taken 
 up and the good fish are sorted out and pre- 
 served, but the bad and worthless are cast 
 out. The disciples must have listened to 
 this parable with intense interest, for many 
 of them were fishermen. They had often cast 
 the net into the sea and toiled all night long 
 and taken nothing. When they became ac- 
 quainted with Jesus we read that "they 
 straightway left their nets and folio wedHim." 
 Matt. 4:20. The Lord Jesus had already ex- 
 plained the mystery of Israel in the parable of 
 the hidden treasure. He had also explained the 
 mystery of the Church in the parable of the 
 pearl, and now that he would explain the 
 mystery of the end of the age. (the dispensa- 
 tion of grace) He uses the parable of the 
 drag net and then to these disciples, thor- 
 oughly acquainted as they were with every 
 detail of the fisherman's work. He adds the 
 following by way of interpretation, "thus 
 
THE PARABLE 05 1HZ ERAG NET Yi 
 
 shall it be in the completion of the age: the 
 angels shall go forth an-:: sever the wicked 
 from among the ;ust, and shall cast them in- 
 to the furnace of hre: there shall v e weeping 
 and gnasnms" 01 teetn. 
 
 As we look at tnis parao.e we can reaaav 
 
 nence: the net, the sea. the fish, the hsherman 
 and the hnal separation of the good from the 
 bad. 
 
 THE NET -What is the net : What 
 does it represent? Seme would nave us be- 
 lieve that the net represents the church. 
 However, this cannot be: for the scene of this 
 parable is laid in a time after the church is tak- 
 en out of the world. According t; I Thess. 
 4:16.17 the hrst event in the closing of this 
 dispensation of grace will be the e:mi::g :f 
 the Lord for His" saints. At His avvearinv 
 the trumpet's sound will raise up the dead 
 
 up first, and then we whe are alive and re- 
 main on the earth will be caught up and 
 thus shall the church, the one pearl :■■:* great 
 price be taken up to shine forever resplendent 
 in the bosom of the Father, airier the church 
 is taken up the end of the age begins. This 
 
100 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 parable is a description of the end of the age, 
 the Master Himself in His interpretation of 
 the parable says distinctly, "thus shall it be 
 in the completion of the age." Thus we can 
 see very clearly that the net is not the church, 
 for the scene of this parable is laid in a time 
 after the church is taken up out of the world. 
 The first event in the closing of this dis- 
 pensation will be the coming of the Lord for 
 His saints. The next will be a brief period of 
 time called "the great tribulation" described 
 in Matt. 24:21,22; Zeph. 1:15,18; Dan. 12:lj 
 Jer. 30:5-7; Rev. 7:14. This time of great 
 tribulation will be a dreadful time, were it 
 not for the prayers of God's elect, all would 
 be destroyed. After the period of great tribu- 
 lation is ended, then the Lord will come with 
 His saints, in great power and glory and af- 
 ter the separation of the good from the bad 
 is accomplished the millennial reign begins. 
 We believe the scene of the parable of the 
 drag net is laid some time after the coming 
 of the Lord for His saints, and some time be- 
 fore His coming with His saints. In all 
 probability the separation of the good from 
 the bad mentioned in this parable, occurs 
 during the great tribulation. 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE DRAG NET 101 
 
 Inasmuch as we have seen that the net 
 cannot represent the church, we are still con- 
 fronted by the same question, What is the 
 Net? The Master says " Again the Kingdom 
 of the heavens is like unto a drag net." We 
 believe then that the net represents the King- 
 dom. Let us keep the distinction between 
 the church and the kingdom in mind. The 
 church is not the kingdom, yet the Church is 
 in the Kingdom. This may seem confusing, 
 but we can illustrate it in this way: Every 
 church has an influence, that influence is not 
 confined to the membership of that church, 
 but reaches out among a great number of 
 people who are not connected with any 
 church. Now what shall we call the terri- 
 tory over which any church may have an in- 
 fluence? Let us call it the kingdom of that 
 church. Now the church of Jesus Christ (we 
 refer to the church irrespective of denomina- 
 tion) is exercising a great influence through- 
 out the world, that influence is by no means 
 confined to the membership of the church, 
 what shall we call this vast domain over 
 which the church of Christ exercises an influ- 
 ence? The name that is commonly applied 
 to this vast domain is Christendom, the do- 
 
102 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 main where the name of Jesus is known and 
 honored. We are willing to admit that there 
 are people in the world who have not yet 
 come under the influence of the kingdom, not 
 only in foreign lands, but even in our own 
 land there are many w^ho have never heard 
 the name of Jesus, But wherever the Gospel 
 has been presented, wherever men have been 
 brought face to face with the question, what 
 will you do with Jesus? That is Christendom, 
 that is the kingdom. During this dispensa- 
 tion, the Gospel is being spread through the 
 instrumental^ of the church. By and by at 
 the comiilg of the Lord the church wall be 
 taken out of the world and then will come 
 the great tribulation. It is very evident that 
 this time of great tribulation does not begin 
 until the church is taken out of the world. It 
 occurs during the last half of Daniel's seven- 
 tieth week, and is described under the fifth, 
 sixth and seventh seals of the book of Revela- 
 tion, The great tribulation will not begin 
 till the antichrist is come, and antichrist can- 
 not be manifested till the Holy Spirit removes 
 the church out of the world, for He is the 
 power in the church that restrains. II Thess. 
 2:7,8, "The mystery of lawlessness doth al- 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE DRAG NET 103 
 
 ready work; only there is One that restraineth 
 now, until He is taken out of the way. And 
 then shall be revealed the lawless one." 
 
 After the church (the pearl of great price) 
 is taken up, the end of the age begins and it 
 is in the end of the age that the scene of this 
 parable of the drag net is laid. Inasmuch as 
 the Lord Jesus does not give us an interpre- 
 tation of all the details of this parable, we 
 w r ill not attempt to explain that which He 
 does not reveal. However this much is evi- 
 dent. After the church is taken out of the 
 world, God wall not utterly abandon this 
 world and turn it over to the power of the 
 evil one. Even during the time of great 
 tribulation, men will be warned of impending 
 doom. Perhaps the angels who are to separ- 
 ate the good from the bad wall also fly to 
 and fro in the heavens with the everlasting 
 Gospel and call upon men "to fear God and 
 give Him the glo^, for the hour of His judg- 
 ment is come." Rev. 14:6,7. 
 
 The most prominent fact in th£ parable 
 of the drag net is the separation of the good 
 from the bad. The Savior Himself says that 
 this will take place in the end of the age and 
 that the work of separating the good from 
 
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 tei ie 
 
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106 THE SEVEN PARABLES 
 
 mercy. As we walk through the corridors of 
 Truth in His Word and review the history of 
 His dealing with man, we see that from the 
 beginning to the end that history is the rec- 
 ord of the Spirit of God striving with man 
 and the spirit of man rebelling against God. 
 All through the ages and dispensations of 
 the past, the hand of God has been stretched 
 out in mercy over rebellious and sinful hu- 
 manity, nor has God ever wholly abandoned 
 the human family or forsaken them for their 
 sin. God takes no pleasure in the death of 
 the wicked, He would have all men be saved. 
 When we think of His wonderful love, His in- 
 finite mercy and patience in dealing with sin- 
 ful humanity, ought not we who are bought 
 with the price of His precious blood, be more 
 patient and gracious, merciful and forgiving. 
 Hath He not said, if thy enemy hunger feed 
 Him, if he thirst give him drink; hath He not 
 said vengeance is mine I will repay. If our 
 lives were ever filled with this spirit of the 
 Master, would we not be more successful in 
 winning souls? 
 
 When at last the fullness of time is come 
 and the cup of the world's iniquity is full, 
 then the angels will begin their work of sep- 
 
THE PARABLE OF THE DRAG NET 107 
 
 arating the good from the evil. What start- 
 ling changes and revelations will be made in 
 that time when the angels take this world in 
 hand. What weeping, what wailing, what 
 gnashing of teeth, when the wicked are con- 
 sumed by the wrath of God and by the fierce- 
 ness of His anger. What brightness, what 
 glory will be revealed w^hen the righteous ap- 
 pear separated at last from all that w^hich is 
 evil or occasions stumbling. 
 
 What is your life? Is it like a bright and 
 shining light that shines more and more un- 
 to the perfect daj^, or are you each day treas- 
 uring up wrath against the day of wrath? 
 Think not that because judgment has been so 
 long delayed, that it will never come; The 
 Lord hath sworn and He will also perform 
 it; vengeance is mine, I will repay saith the 
 Lord. Watch, therefore, and pray for how 
 shall we escape, if we neglect so great a sal- 
 vation. 
 
 When Jesus had finished these parables 
 He said unto His disciples, Matthew 13:51, 
 Have ye understood all these things? They 
 say unto Him, Yea. And He said unto them, 
 therefore every scribe who hath been made a 
 disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like unto 
 
108 THE SEVEN PARABI.ES 
 
 a man that is a householder which bringeth 
 forth out of his treasure things new and old. 
 
 The "things old" refer to the things of 
 the Old Testament and the "things new" re- 
 fer to the things of the New Testament, of 
 which the Savior had just given a synopsis 
 in the parables of the kingdom. Thus by a 
 comparative study of the Old and New Tes- 
 tament of God's Word, may we under the 
 guidance of the Holy Spirit, ever be enabled 
 to know more of His will and lay hold of 
 God's great plan and purpose for the human 
 race. 
 
 If you ask what is the sign of His coming 
 and of the end of the age? We answer: Mat- 
 thew 24:36, "But of that day and hour 
 knoweth no one, not even the angels of 
 heaven, neither the Son, but the Father on- 
 
 Watch therefore and pray for in an hour 
 ye think not, the Son of Man cometh. 
 
f JUN 8 1908 
 
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 Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 
 Treatment Date: July 2005 
 
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