Biblical parables. Plots and reflections (Vladimir Leonov). Biblical parables: plots, interpretation, wisdom Jesus parables
All Gospel parables are surprisingly short. There is no writer or philosopher who would leave behind such a meager legacy. However, we re-read the words spoken by Jesus Christ and transmitted in the Gospels many times throughout our lives. They do not become obsolete and remain relevant for more than two thousand years. During this time, entire volumes of research and interpretation were written.
Simple stories that open the way to salvation
Maybe the parables of Jesus Christ are so ornate that not everyone who reads them is able to understand the meaning of what the Lord said? Not at all. They are extremely simple and logical, and the parables of Jesus Christ for children were completely rewritten by various writers in such a language that against their background, folk tales for the little ones look much more mysterious. Jesus Christ was the first who began to address people without dividing them by religion, nationality or social status. The parables of the Lord Jesus Christ in simple words reveal to people what the meaning of life is. Christ, with his parables, showed us the shortest path to the salvation of the soul. And the salvation of the soul is peace, tranquility, happiness, prosperity and harmony. He also showed that this path is not at all easy, but by sacrificing Himself to all humanity, He ensured that the Lord Himself takes care of the salvation of everyone who turns their heart to Him.
All the Savior’s speeches are imbued with love for everyone
The parables of Jesus Christ cover all aspects of human life. They can be studied from a variety of perspectives, for example, considering the relationship between God and man or between man and other people. Each of them can be projected onto individual everyday situations, or can be considered as the entire life path of a person. For comparison, you can take the parables of Jesus Christ and the parables written by famous writers. One famous Russian writer, who left behind wonderful novels in which he preserved for us the details of the War of 1812, and also revealed the traditions, morals, customs and life of our ancestors who lived in the 19th century, at some point in his life turned to the genre of moralizing novels. parables Reading the parables of Jesus Christ and this writer, you involuntarily pay attention to the fact that in the stories of Christ there is not a shadow of annoyance at unreasonable people.
Christian thinkers who have taken the liberty to interpret the short parables of Jesus Christ unanimously agree that the Lord loves each of us and understands to the very deepest corners of the soul that He exists only to save and give happiness to each of His creations, then there is for you and me, no matter how different we may be and no matter what temptations torment our souls.
Interpretations of the story of the sheep that strayed from the flock
The lost animal in Jesus Christ's parable about the sheep that strayed from the flock shows how important every person is to the Lord. At least, many theologians believe that this parable is about the righteous and one sinner. In their opinion, the Lord rejoices at every sinner who repents of his sins and joins the host of the righteous. However, Theophylact of Bulgaria sees another meaning in this story. The lost sheep is people, and the flock is all other intelligent creatures. In other words, he believes that the Lord, of all living beings on earth and in the universe, considers only man to be a lost sheep. He considers the return of people under His roof to be His greatest joy.
Another theologian, Archbishop Averky (Taushev), by the flock means hosts of angels, and by the lost sheep - a sinful person.
The parable says that God allows for the possibility that a person, like a lamb, sooner or later, for one reason or another, will stray from the flock. However, He will not abandon him, but will make every effort to bring him back. The words of Christ, conveyed by His disciples, about the joy of the Master from the return of a lost sheep - this is not the joy from replenishing lost property. This is completely different.
The story of the lost sheep, projected onto the family relationship between a parent and his child
Imagine yourself in the place of this Master. The sheep is your little child who has gone to explore the neighboring yard. It is extremely difficult to draw such a parallel - after all, you do not have the opportunity, like the Master from the parable, that is, God, to see how a baby fearlessly walks past a sandbox with scattered garbage or past a large dog, and in time to avert serious dangers from him. You cannot read in a child’s soul how at some point he remembered you and how passionately he wanted to be next to you, how he felt great love for you and longing, how he was afraid of life without you, and how he decided to return. The Lord saw all this and accepted his child with open arms. However, the parable does not say how many times a person can leave and return like this. This means that God does not limit us. We ourselves make the decision whether to go with the herd or deviate from it. He will always rejoice at our return and will not punish us. How to live according to this parable, you ask? After all, we are sheep who make mistakes from time to time, repent of them, and then receive grace from the Lord. This parable is as multidimensional as all the parables about Jesus Christ. If your sheep has strayed from the flock, that is, your child has taken a dangerous path, turn to the Lord so that He will protect him and save him from death. Think and pray about your loved one constantly, and then you, as well as the lost child, will experience the same joy that is spoken of in the parable.
We are all prodigal sons
The same theme is touched upon by Jesus Christ's parable about the prodigal son. However, these two stories cannot be considered completely analogous, for the Holy Scripture does not contain a single superfluous or random word. The story about the youngest son, who left home and squandered his father’s inheritance, about his older brother, who remained in the house and worked conscientiously in his father’s fields all these years, and also about how he met his completely impoverished prodigal child who returned from wanderings - this is also parable about Jesus Christ. Short stories told by the Savior to His disciples always imply the participation of the Lord in them. In the story of the prodigal son, the father is a type of the Lord, and his sons are us humans.
The Lord calls us to learn to forgive
This parable teaches us to forgive without a second thought, to accept repentance without edifying suggestions, without reasoning and moralizing. The Lord is trying to inspire us so that we are not afraid that a repentant loved one, having received absolution, will again indulge in all kinds of serious crimes. This shouldn't concern us. The ability to forgive is no less important than the ability to ask for forgiveness. It's no secret that the father is also to blame for the fact that a son abandons his family and wastes his father's property to satisfy his own whims. In ordinary human life this happens quite often. Within the family, throughout our entire existence together, we from time to time remind each other of past grievances. This forms hostile relationships from which we want to break out, and from time to time we leave our family and begin to live only in our own personal interests, convincing ourselves that we have suffered enough - we can live for ourselves. The consequence of this is spiritual devastation.
The same situation, only slightly changed, is repeated again and again. Different peoples even have proverbs: “You can’t wash a black dog white,” “No matter how much you feed a wolf, he still looks into the forest,” which speaks to the meaninglessness of forgiveness. These proverbs, although they are folk wisdom dating back many hundreds of years, are still imbued with hostility and contempt for man. They feel a partial attitude towards the sinner, an elevation of one’s own personality over the personality of a person who was called a black dog or a wolf. In none of His parables does the Lord appear to despise people.
The offended person is just as created in the image and likeness of God as the one who offended him
Man is created in the image and likeness of God. How easy it is to relate this truth to oneself and how difficult it is to perceive the Image of God in a person who has caused trouble! Jesus Christ, talking with his disciples, did not put himself above them, for better than anyone else he understood that all people together and each person individually are the Image and Likeness of the Creator Himself. For the sake of saving each of us, He offered Himself on the sacrificial altar, fulfilling the will of the Father. The duty of every Christian is to make his sacrifice in the name of the Lord. Is any of us capable of committing such an act for the sake of saving humanity?
Fasting and prayer are what is required of every Christian, so that humanity does not have to pay in blood for its sins
Reading the Gospel and interpretations to it, written by wonderful and holy people, we understand how little is required of us so that the world is not shaken by tragedies with human casualties. We must only try to love, forgive and justify each other, always remember God and not lose touch with him. In order for this connection to be maintained, it is necessary to make sacrifices through fasting and accompany each action with prayer - and nothing more. Jesus said this.
Famous theologians and interpreters of Holy Scripture
Almost all the parables of Jesus Christ with interpretation by domestic and foreign priests and theologians are in such a book as “The Lord Speech...”. From ancient times, the Holy Fathers of the Church attached great importance to the interpretation of the words of the Savior preserved in the Gospel. It contains almost all the parables of Jesus Christ with the interpretation of such theologians revered by the Christian world as Meister Eckhart, St. John Chrysostom, Blessed Theophylact of Bulgaria, Archbishop Athanasius of Alexandria, St. Luke of Voino-Yasenetsky, Gregory the Great of Dvoeslov, Hieromartyr Gregory of Shlisselburg, St. Basil of Kineshem, Archbishop of Tavrominsk Feofan Keramevs, Archimandrite John (Krestyankin), Archimandrite Kirill (Pavlov), Saint Philaret (Drozdov) of Moscow and Kolomna, Archbishop Averky (Taushev), Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt, Archpriest Vsevolod Shpiller, Archpriest Alexander Shargunov, Saint Kirill of Alexandria, Saint Theophan the Recluse, Rev. John of Damascus, Archpriest Viktor Potapov, Blessed Jerome of Stridon, Bishop Methodius (Kulman), Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh, Archpriest Dimitry Smirnov, monk Evfimy Zigaben, as well as Bible interpreters Gladkov B.I. and Lopukhin A.P.
In each of the stories told by Christ, He Himself and each of us are present
It is believed that the Gospels contain not much more than thirty parables:
About the sower;
About evil winegrowers;
About the mustard seed;
About ten virgins;
About the Lost Sheep;
About the Prodigal Son;
About the wedding feast;
About sourdough;
About the good sower and the tares;
About the barren fig tree;
About the workers in the vineyard;
About the lost drachma;
About talents;
About a treasure hidden in a field;
About an unmerciful debtor;
About an abandoned seine;
About a merchant looking for good pearls;
About two sons;
About the prudent servant;
About the Pharisee and the Publican;
About ten mines;
About the Rich Man and Lazarus;
About a worker who came from the field;
About an unjust judge;
About an unfaithful steward;
About the fig tree and trees;
About a seed growing out of the ground in an inconspicuous way;
About a man asking his friend for bread at midnight;
About the foolish rich man;
About two brothers;
About the healing of soul and body;
About lilies, etc.
The demons immediately recognized the Lord incarnate
During the period of His incarnation, the Lord walked through the land of Israel, healed the sick and told people what they should do in order to inherit eternal life and be worthy of the Kingdom of Heaven. Communicating with people of different upbringing, education and faith, in order for them all to understand Him correctly, He used simple examples from ordinary, everyday life that was well known to them. The disciples wrote down His words. Left alone with them, the Lord explained what he meant. Thus, the stories that Jesus of Nazareth told are the secret parables of the Living Jesus Christ. After all, it is unthinkable for a simple person to recognize in a preacher, of whom there were a great many at that time, the incarnation of God Himself. Everything that a person is capable of perceiving has already existed. Everything new is, as we know, a well-forgotten old. But the Lord has never appeared to people before. But he was immediately recognized by the servants of Satan. There is a place in the Gospel of Mark where a man possessed by a demon recognized God in Him and shouted to everyone about it. The Lord cast out this demon from the man, and forbade the man himself to talk about Himself and about the healing that had occurred.
The meaning and confirmation of the phrase: “There is nothing secret that would not become apparent”
Theophylact of Bulgaria explains it this way. You should never notify anyone about a good deed you have done. Done in secret from people, it is revealed to God. An unpublicized good deed is considered dedicated to God, so the Lord will look upon it with His mercy. A good deed that becomes known to people receives reward from them, and therefore is considered to be done not for God, but for people. “There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed,” says Jesus. This is confirmed by the fact that the Lord Himself, the Mystery of Mysteries, became a reality for people, incarnate in the Son.
True Mercy
One man was walking from Jerusalem to Jericho, and on the way he was attacked by robbers. They robbed him, beat him and left him to his fate. The priest and the Levite, who were of the same religion and nationality as him, passed by without providing help, and a certain Samaritan, who happened to be passing through this area, picked up the poor man and took him to the nearest hotel. There he asked to take care of the victim, left money and said that on the way back he would come again and if the owner spent more than the money he left, he would pay for these expenses too. This parable of Jesus Christ about mercy says that a person who is merciful in the name of God does not distinguish people by categories. He always shows it when help is needed.
Why didn't the Lord reveal when the Day of Judgment would come?
Our whole life is a preparation for God's Judgment, when He will exact from everyone according to their deeds. The disciples asked Him when this Judgment would take place. The parable of Jesus Christ about the Last Judgment does not answer this question. If we knew that the end of times would not come in our lifetime, then we would not begin to prepare for it, we would probably go to great lengths, because anyway, we will not see it during our lifetime. In this way, we would also harm our descendants, since we would not be able to teach them Christian life by our example. And if we knew that it would come in the coming years, during our lifetime, we would also do a lot of harm to ourselves, because we would decide that nothing could be changed anyway. The Lord does not reveal the fatal year; He says in the parable of the called and the chosen, as well as in the parable of the ten virgins, that we must always be in anticipation of the coming of the Judge, for when He comes, woe will be to those who did not prepare for this Day.
Book of Books - Eternal Wisdom
The Lord brought people the Good News of future happiness for all who believed in Him and followed His path. In order to receive the honor of becoming a participant in the wedding feast, that is, to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, we must constantly remember and honor the Savior’s covenant “Love one another.” For this reason, responsible and loving mothers and fathers, as well as grandparents, have been retelling the parables of Jesus Christ for children and grandchildren for two thousand years. And God grant that this tradition never stops.
Simple gospel parables reveal their new facets to us with each reading. Being recorded in the Holy Scriptures, they all relate to the life of each individual person in different guises. Each parable requires regular rethinking and projection onto everyday circumstances. It is no coincidence that wise people say that in order for life to turn out well, it is enough to study, comprehend and master only one book - the Bible.
About the parables of the Lord
Our Lord Jesus Christ, during His earthly life, often taught the people with words and deeds that were filled with love and mercy; and out of His love for us He Himself accepted suffering and death for us. He said that offenses must be forgiven, and He Himself prayed for those on the cross. who crucified Him. He explained God's commandments to those who listened to Him, taught them to pray, and promised eternal life to those who would believe in Him and follow Him. The people followed Jesus; there were men, women, and children, people of all ages, of all conditions, rich and poor, learned and unlearned.
Jesus Christ wanted everyone to understand His teaching, and for this purpose He often presented His teaching in parables, that is, in allegorical stories and
similarities borrowed from ordinary life - from the most simple and well-known objects. You will easily understand this by reading a few parables.
Here is the first one, told by the Evangelist Matthew.
PARABLE
about the house built on stone and about the house built on sand
Matthew 7:24-27
Jesus Christ once said; “Not everyone who says to me: Lord! God! He who does the will of My Father in heaven will enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
Then He spoke the following parable:
“Everyone who hears My words and does them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”
“And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it did not fall, because it was founded on rock.”
“But everyone who hears My words and does not do them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.”
“And the rain fell, and the rivers overflowed, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell, and its fall was great.” Anyone who has seen how a house is built knows that the firmer and deeper its foundation, the stronger it will be, the better it will withstand storms, winds and floods. The same thing happens to a person: in life he has to fight temptations, disasters and dangers; and only then will he stand against them, and will he establish his life on a solid and unshakable foundation. This foundation is faith in God and obedience to His commandments.
A person who is a true believer always keeps in mind the commandments of the Lord, and this helps him to stand firmly on the path of truth; in all his affairs he acts in accordance with them and subjugates his own will to them. If he is rich, then, loving his neighbor, as the Lord commanded, he uses his wealth for good and useful deeds, and does not live only to please himself; if he is poor, then he tries to support himself and his family with honest work and will more willingly endure a lack than agree to act dishonestly, remembering that every dishonest deed, lie and deception is disgusting to God. He is not easily tempted by frivolous advice and bad example, because he is accustomed to following the commandments of the Lord. Whether misfortune or suffering befalls him, he does not fall into despondency and does not complain, but with good spirits tries to overcome disasters or endures them with patience, being confident that God Himself sends suffering and sorrows for the benefit of the soul. In a moment of danger, he does not give in to despair, knowing that a person’s life and death are in the hands of God. Finally, at the very hour of death, faith strengthens him, pointing him to a future life. He knows that God will not abandon His mercy to those who tried to do His will on earth.
But this is not a person who does not live in accordance with the commandments of God, but is accustomed to following his own will. He does not know how to resist temptations. A bad example and bad advice often lead him astray from the good path. If such a person is rich, he lives more for himself, spends his time in idleness and vain pleasures, without thinking about his duties. If he has fallen into poverty, then, out of habit of work, he often decides to do dishonest things in order to get money and, having obtained it, spend it on trifles and for his own pleasure instead of helping his family with it. In distress, he becomes despondent and is not far from despair. Such a person is pitiful; his acquaintances and comrades despise him for his frivolity, because, as they say, he goes where the wind blows; his word cannot be trusted, his promise cannot be relied upon. He brings no benefit to his family; on the contrary, sometimes it becomes a burden to himself. He feels in his heart that he is not living as he should, but does not have enough strength and courage to repent from the fullness of his heart and start a new life. He is happy if he meets a pious person who will encourage him with kind words and advice and assure him that the Lord helps every sincerely repentant sinner when he turns to the path of virtue.
All of us, of course, would like to become honest, straightforward people and firm believers. To do this, from an early age one must acquire the habit of following the Lord’s commandments in everything, before each task asking oneself whether it is good and pleasing to God, and in general doing not as one wants, but as one should. We must try to have power over our own will in order to control it; if it controls a person, then sometimes it carries him away where he should not.
Let us ask God for strength and strength, repeating the song that is sung in church during the first week of Lent:
“On the immovable, Christ, the stone of Your commandments, establish my thoughts!”
“Solid my heart, O Lord, on the rock of Your commandments, for the Lord alone is holy!”
PARABLE
about the sower
Matthew 13:8 - 23; Mark 4:1 - 20; Luke 8:4–15
Jesus Christ was on the shore of Lake Gennesaret; a multitude of people surrounded Him. He entered the boat and from there began to speak the following parable.
“The sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell by the road, and birds came and devoured it.” “Some fell on a rocky place where there was little soil, and soon sprang up, because it was not deep in the ground, but it burned from the heat of the sun and, having no roots, withered.”
“Some fell among the thorns; and the thorns grew and choked the seed.”
“Some fell on good soil and brought forth fruit thirty, sixty, and a hundred.”
When the apostles asked Jesus Christ about the meaning of this parable, He explained it to them this way:
“The seed is the word of God.”
“Those sown by the wayside signify those in whom the word of God is sown, but to whom the devil immediately comes and snatches away the word sown in their hearts.”
The Word of the Lord must bear fruit in our hearts, that is, arouse faith and zeal for the fulfillment of all Christian duties; but just as a seed that falls along the road does not grow, so a word taken without attention does not bring any benefit, it is immediately forgotten; Jesus Christ said that the devil takes him away, but the evil one has power only over those who themselves allow him to come to them through their sins, laziness and inattention to prayer and the word of the Lord. If we begin to fight against evil, listen carefully to the teaching of Christ and try to fulfill it, the good seed will take root in our hearts, and the devil will not be able to steal it.
“Those sown on rocky ground,” Jesus continued, “mean those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy, but the word of God takes no root in them; At times they believe, but at times of temptation they fall away.”
For the most part, we all listen to the word of the Lord with joy. But this is not enough: one must be ready to fulfill God’s law even if this would mean being subjected to hardship, labor and suffering.
In former times, when the Christian faith was not yet established, Jews and pagans cruelly persecuted Christians. They were imprisoned and imprisoned, separated from their families, tortured and killed. But even at the same time, they did not agree to renounce Christ, endured suffering with patience and went to death, rejoicing that they could thereby prove their loyalty to God. We honor the memory of these sufferers and honor them as saints. Now there are no longer obvious persecutions of Christians, but every day there are cases when we can prove whether we are faithful to God. We are faithful to Him if we prefer the fulfillment of His commandments to any benefit, to any pleasure. We are faithful to Him if we endure disasters and suffering with patience, knowing that they are sent to us by His will. If, on the contrary, we act against His commandments in order to obtain some benefit or pleasure, or in order to avoid danger and labor, then we become one of those who believe at times, but fall away when tempted.
Not only adults, but also every small child can prove whether he is faithful to God, because everyone has his own responsibilities according to his strength. About those children who study lazily, who do not follow the orders of their parents or, out of fear of punishment, tell lies and hide their guilt, about those children it cannot be said that they love God and are faithful to Him.
“And the seed that fell among the thorns,” says Christ, “means those who hear the word, but then it is drowned out in them by worries, wealth and worldly pleasures and does not bear fruit.”
These are those for whom earthly worries, vain affairs and pleasures of life are more important than the word of Christ. In church they listen to the word of the Lord, but then indulge in a vain life and empty amusements, not trying to overcome their sinful inclinations. That is why everything bad takes root in their hearts and drowns out everything good, just as bad grass drowns out good grass. “And what was sown on good soil,” the Lord finally said, explaining the parable, “means those in whose hearts the word sown is kept pure and bears abundant fruit.”
This is how it should be with the word of God sown in our hearts. If we try to drive away all bad thoughts from ourselves, if we earnestly ask God to help our good intentions, then the word of God will bear rich fruits in us. The habit of goodness will take root and strengthen. Every day we will be more and more corrected from our sins, become better, patiently endure the suffering and hardships sent to us by the will of God, and actively and lovingly fulfill the commandments of the Lord.
PARABLE
about seed and tares
Matthew 13: 24 – 30, 36 – 43
After the parable of the sower, Jesus Christ offered the people a parable about the seed and the tares. “The kingdom of heaven,” He said, “is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.”
“The man’s enemy came at night, sowed tares among the wheat, and left. When the greenery sprang up and the fruit appeared, then the tares also appeared. Seeing this, the servants said to the owner: “Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where did the tares come from?”
He answered them. “The enemy man did it.” “Would you like to order,” said the servants, “we will go and pull out the tares?”
“But the owner objected: no, by pulling out the tares, you can also pull out the wheat. Leave both to grow until the harvest; And at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather first the tares and bind them and the sheaves to burn them, and put the wheat into my barn.”
Jesus Christ Himself explained this parable. He said that this will happen at the end of the age, when evil and good people (tares and wheat) will gather at the Last Judgment; the wicked will be condemned and the good will be rewarded. The master did not allow his slaves to pull out the tares. This indicates the long-suffering and mercy of the Lord, who does not want to destroy the sinner, but gives him time for repentance and correction.. It is not always in this life that the sinner is punished and the righteous rewarded; We often see that an evil person succeeds in his undertakings, and that a good person, on the contrary, suffers suffering and misfortune. But a believer will never be embarrassed by this, because faith helps to endure disasters with patience and with hope in the mercy of God, who in the future life will reward everyone according to their deeds.
In this parable, the Lord again speaks of a sower who sowed seed in his field. The good seed is sown in all of us; we are all Christians, and the Gospel has been preached to us. Why are we not all good, but sometimes we are evil, ungrateful, and disobedient to the will of the Lord? Jesus Christ explained this by saying that the devil sowed his seed of evil right where the seed of good was sown. But we should not forget that the devil has power only over those who willingly indulge in evil and do not try to fight against it.
Here we can again repeat the comparison used by the Lord. Look at a field that belongs to a hardworking peasant who cultivates his land well. For him, the sown seed grows well, while for a careless and negligent owner, the seed grows poorly and the field is overgrown with grass. This happens with us too: if we try to become better, eradicate bad habits in ourselves and accustom ourselves to everything good, then the word of God will take root in us and grow well; but if we lazily look after ourselves, then the devil will take advantage of our laziness and carelessness to sow his tares on us too, and they will take root, drowning out the disposition to good. Let us try to fight against evil, against our own evil will, to move away from bad examples and to be more with good people, who, by doing good themselves, can teach us good.
Let us also try not to set a bad example for others: this is a great sin. Our sinful deeds, and sometimes even an idle word, can seduce our neighbor, and then we will be like the evil one who sows tares in the field. On the contrary, he who gives good advice and teaches good things helps Christ, who sows good seed.
PARABLE
about mustard seed
Matthew 13:31 – 32
Jesus Christ once compared the kingdom of heaven to a mustard seed that a man sowed in his field. It is smaller than all the seeds, but a large and tall plant comes out of it, so that the birds of the air fly and take refuge in its branches. With this parable, Jesus Christ pointed out the power of the gospel teaching. At first it was preached to a small number of people, but it soon spread throughout the whole earth and destroyed the false teachings that had existed until then. Just as a tree gives protection and shelter to the birds of the air, so the Christian faith gives strength and consolation to all who accept it.
What has happened throughout the whole earth is happening in our hearts. Having established themselves in them, the Christian teaching destroys with its power bad thoughts, evil and vices. Just as a small grain has the power to produce a tall and fruitful tree, so the word of the Lord, accepted by a pure heart, takes root in it and bears fruit, that is, Christian virtues: faith, love for God and neighbor, patience and mercy. At first, goodness begins in us in a barely noticeable way; but if we constantly pray to God for help and at the same time begin to carefully monitor ourselves so that we do not transgress the law of God either in word or deed, then the good beginning will take root and grow in us.
PARABLE
about a treasure hidden in a field
Matthew 13:44
And Jesus Christ compared the kingdom of heaven with a treasure hidden in the field. The man, having found this treasure, joyfully sold all his property and bought that field.
And for all of us there is a treasure that is more precious than all the riches, all the blessings in the world. We could not achieve it by any effort if Jesus Christ Himself, out of His love, did not help us. He delivers it to us at the dear price of His suffering. This treasure is eternal life. Jesus Christ Himself suffered and died to give eternal life to those who believe in Him.
This is the treasure - faith in God. Faith is more precious and necessary than all possible earthly blessings; it is joy and consolation in this life and the path to eternal life.
Life is eternal! - this is what awaits us after our difficult and short-lived earthly life! This is the reward prepared by the all-good Lord! How short is earthly life! Meanwhile, don’t we all willingly work to arrange and decorate it? How many people in their youth work and labor in order to achieve a calm and comfortable old age! But the earthly future is very uncertain; none of us knows whether he will live to see tomorrow. The future beyond the grave, the eternal, is certain; she is either eternal joy or eternal torment; Let's take care of her. Let us try to live as the Lord commanded, and let us continually pray to God that He will arrange our afterlife according to His goodness.
PARABLE
about the seine
Matthew 13: 47 – 50
“The kingdom of heaven,” Jesus said, “is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of all kinds.” He was pulled ashore; The good fish were collected in vessels, and the small ones were thrown out. So it will be at the end of the age: angels will appear, separate the wicked from the righteous, and cast the wicked into the fiery furnace.”
PARABLE
about the merciless debtor
Matthew 18:21 – 35
The “Our Father” prayer, which each of us repeats daily morning and evening, was given to us, as we know, by Jesus Christ Himself. In it, by the way, we ask God to forgive us our sins. “And forgive us our debts (sins), we say and add: “Just as we forgive our debtors.” If we do not forgive those who have sinned against us, then we cannot expect the Lord to forgive us our sins. So, we should beware of anger, make peace with our comrades, our own, if we happen to have a quarrel with them, forgive their offenses and remember that God will not hear the prayers of someone who, coming to church, retains anger or rancor against his neighbor. To explain this truth, Jesus once told the following parable: “A servant was brought to a certain king who owed him ten thousand talents (a talent means an amount of more than one thousand two hundred silver rubles). Since that servant had nothing with which to pay the debt, the king ordered him, his wife, his children, and everything he had to be sold to pay the debt. But that slave threw himself on his knees and said: “Sovereign! Be patient with me, I’ll pay you everything.” The Emperor, having mercy, released him and forgave him the entire debt. After this, the servant met his comrade, who owed him one hundred denarii, that is, much less than what he himself owed the king. He grabbed his comrade and began to beat him, demanding payment of the debt. His comrade fell at his feet and, begging, said: “Be patient with me, I will give you everything.” But he didn’t want to listen and put him in prison.
The king was told about this incident. Then the king, calling a servant, says to him: “Evil servant! I forgave you the entire debt because you begged me; Shouldn’t you also have had mercy on your comrade, just as I had mercy on you?” And, angry, the sovereign ordered him to be tortured until he repaid his debt. “So,” added Jesus, “my heavenly Father will do to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother his sins from the heart.”
Of course, the king acted justly when he punished the one who, having received mercy and forgiveness, did not have mercy or forgive himself. Let us remember that no matter how much our neighbor may offend us, he is still not as sinful against us as we are all sinful against the Lord God. We are annoyed when someone offends us, and especially if a person to whom we have rendered a benefit or service offends us. Let us remember how many innumerable benefits God has shown us. He created the earth and everything on it for man; He gave us life with all its blessings; no matter how sinful we are, the Lord Jesus Christ, having loved us, came down to earth to teach us the will of the Lord, and finally accepted suffering and death in order to save us from eternal condemnation and give those who believe in Him eternal bliss. And, despite all these blessings, we constantly offend the Lord God with our sins.
Let us begin to pray to Him for our correction, and at the same time we will forgive those who have offended us, in order to ask God for mercy with greater hope. Jesus Christ said that captivity will be dealt with us as we deal with others. “Forgive your neighbors,” He said, “and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you.
PARABLES
about the good Samaritan
Luke 10:25-37
One day a lawyer came to Jesus Christ and said: “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus asked him: “What is written in the law? What do you read in it? He answered: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus said to him “You answered correctly; do this and you will receive eternal life.” But the lawyer asked Jesus: “Who is my neighbor?” To this Jesus said: “A certain man was going from Jerusalem to Jericho and was caught by robbers, who took off his clothes, wounded him and left, leaving him barely alive. By chance, a priest was walking along that road and, seeing him, passed by. Likewise, the Levite, passing through the place, came up, looked, and passed by. Finally, a Samaritan rode up to him and took pity on him. He bandaged his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them, put him on his donkey, brought him to the inn and took care of him. The next day, as he was leaving, he gave money to the innkeeper and said to him: “Take care of him, and if you spend anything on top of this, I will give it to you when I return.” “Which,” asked Jesus, “of the three, was the neighbor to the one who fell into the hands of the robbers?” “Of course, who helped him,” answered the lawyer. Then Jesus said, “Go and do likewise.”
It should be noted that some Jews considered it their duty to love only their friends and provide help only to them, but they hated their enemies, as we often do. But Jesus Christ gave us a different law. He said: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, pray for those who insult you, and as you want people to do to you, do so to them.”
The Samaritans were at enmity with the Jews, but despite this, one Samaritan helped the unfortunate Jew. Let us learn from this parable that we must love all people, and let us ask God to help us maintain love even for those who themselves do not love us and are ready to do us harm. Let us remember the commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If we have the opportunity to help someone, then there is no point in asking whether he is our friend or foe, good or evil, compatriot or stranger. No matter who he is, he is our neighbor, our brother, and we should gladly help him in any way we can: with money, if we have it, with good advice, labor or participation.
By giving help to our neighbor, we give to God Himself. Jesus Christ said: “Whatever you do to one of the least of My brothers, that you do to Me.” By the words “My least brothers” He meant all the unfortunate people in need of help.
PARABLE
about the barren fig tree
Luke 13:6-9
In many parables, Jesus Christ spoke about the long-suffering and mercy of God, about the fact that the Heavenly Father does not desire the death of the sinner, but his correction, and is always ready to accept the repentant. “One man,” He said, “had a fig tree in his garden (a fig tree is the name given to one fruit tree, which we do not have and which grows in Palestine). He came to look for fruit on it and did not find it. Then he said to the gardener: “This is the third year I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree and have not found it; cut it down: what is its place for?” The gardener objected to him: “Sir, leave her for this year too; I will dig it up and cover it with manure; and if it bears fruit, then good, but if not, then we will cut it down.” A fig tree that does not bear fruit means people who live without faith in God, without love for Him and their neighbor, without repentance for their sins, in whose hearts, therefore, the word of the Lord does not bear fruit. But the Lord is long-suffering and merciful. He is in no hurry to condemn the sinner, loving all people and wanting their correction. He gave them His word. He Himself suffered and died for them. He constantly offers them various means of correction, sends them advice and example through good people, gives them the opportunity to learn goodness, and calls them to Himself in various ways. To others He gives many blessings and waits to see if these mercies will awaken in them love and gratitude; He tests others with suffering so that they turn to Him as their only comforter. But if all this does not produce an effect, and the sinner does not repent and does not correct himself, if he does not want to go to the call of the Savior, then, after his death, he will be brought to strict judgment and will accept punishment for his evil deeds.
PARABLE
about the rich man
Luke 12:16-21
Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the Savior of the world, was born in poverty. He often said that one should not become attached to earthly wealth, but should be concerned about acquiring eternal wealth. After death, our wealth will not help us, but good deeds and good feelings will remain with us in eternal life. It often happens that a person, having become attached with all his heart to his wealth, forgets God and His commandments and lives only to please himself; this is a great sin. Jesus Christ warned His disciples against this, saying: “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and thieves break in and steal.” “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be (Matthew 6: 10-21). Once, to warn, Jesus Christ offered this parable: “A certain rich man had a good harvest in the field; and he reasoned with himself: I have nowhere to gather my fruits; I will tear down my barns and build a larger one, and I will gather there all my bread and all my goods, and I will say to my soul: “Soul! You have a lot of goods lying around for many years; rest, eat, drink, be merry.” But God said to him: “You fool! Death will come to you this very night, and then what will happen to your wealth? This is what happens to those who accumulate treasures for themselves, and not for God, and become rich. To be rich in God means to be rich in feelings and deeds pleasing to God. If the person described in the parable were rich in Christian virtues, then, having received a good income, he would not think only about himself, but would also remember about his neighbors who are in need. Faith and love for God and neighbor, this is the wealth that would follow him after his death and would help him “to give a good answer at the terrible judgment of Christ,” which, as you know, we pray for daily, and more than once, in churches.
PARABLE
about the marriage of the Tsarev's son
Matthew 22:1 - 14
at another time, wanting to expose the stubbornness of the Jews, their disregard for the good deeds of God and attachment to earthly goods, Jesus Christ said the following parable:
“The kingdom of heaven is like a king who held a feast on the occasion of the marriage of his son. He sent his slaves to invite guests to the feast, but those invited did not want to come. Then the king sent other slaves to tell them that the feast was ready and that they should go. But they neglected the invitation and went, some to the field, and others to their trade, others even seized the slaves they sent and killed them. The king, hearing about this, became angry, sent an army, destroyed the murderers and burned their city.”
“After this the king said to his servants: The wedding feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy; Therefore, go to the crossroads and invite everyone whom you find to the wedding feast.”
“The slaves went out onto the road and gathered everyone they met, both evil and good, and the feast was filled with guests. When the king came in to look at his guests, he saw one man who was not wearing wedding clothes, and said to him; “My friend, how did you come here without wearing wedding clothes?” He was silent. Then the king ordered the servants, having tied his hands and feet, to drive him out, saying: “Many are called, but few are chosen.”
The meaning of this parable is as follows. The king who made the feast is God the Father; the son of kings is the incarnate Son of God, whose bride is the Church. The wedding feast is the table of gospel teaching and saving sacraments offered through Christ. The Jews were invited to this feast through the prophets and apostles before all nations, but temporary blessings distracted them from accepting the law of Christ and from the promised bliss; they even often cursed at the messengers of God and killed them. Therefore God sent a Roman army against them, which destroyed them; and their city Jerusalem, together with its temple, turned into a heap of ashes and stones. When the Jews did not want to take advantage of the mercies of the Lord and only a few of them believed in Christ, then the Lord commanded the apostles to go to all the countries of the universe and preach the word of the Lord to all the pagans.
Through the Gospel, the Lord God calls us all to the feast, which is eternal life. He tells us: “Everything is ready, come!” Indeed, everything is ready: Jesus Christ, through suffering and death, prepared eternal life for us. We go to her if we believe in God and fulfill the commandments of the Lord. And how many of us are like those people who, instead of going to the king’s invitation, go to the field, or to their trade; that is, they prefer the vain pursuits of life to following Jesus Christ.
It may seem that the king, having called the poor and wretched from the crossroads to his feast, unfairly demands from them that they be clothed in festive clothes. But for a better understanding of this parable, you need to know that in the East, when the king invited guests to his feast, he also assigned festive attire for them; the one who did not agree to put on them offended the kind and hospitable host. This circumstance clarifies the meaning of the parable in relation to us. Where can we, the weak and the poor, on our own find the opportunity to appear in clothing worthy of the heavenly table? But the Lord, by His mercy, has prepared and offers us the means. Jesus Christ himself teaches us how and how to please the Father and King of heaven: he dies to redeem us; ascends to heaven, where he prepares a place for us; promises to all who believe in Him to give them the Holy Spirit, who will help them reject a life of sin and put on the new man. Only by putting on the new man, created according to God, in truth and in the honor of truth, and by being reborn again, can we enter the kingdom of heaven. Let us resort to the Lord with full faith that he will grant us the promised help; Let us ask Him to strengthen our faith, love, repentance for our sins, to give us strength to correct ourselves, so that we may not be expelled from the royal meal, but accepted as children of Christ.
In the first days of Holy Week, the Church reminds everyone of this parable in the following church song:
“I see your palace, my Savior, adorned, and I have no clothes, but let me enter into it, enlighten the robe of my soul, O Light-Giver, and save me.”
PARABLE
about evil winegrowers
Matthew 21: 33 - 44; Mark 12:1 - 12; Luke 20:9-19
The parable of the evil winegrowers is somewhat similar in content and meaning to the previous parable. Here it is: “One owner planted a vineyard, surrounded it with a fence, built a winepress in it, erected a tower, gave it to winegrowers, and went away. When the time for gathering fruit approached, he sent his servants to the vinedressers to get the fruit. The vinedressers, seizing his servants, beat some, killed others, and stoned others. Again he sent other servants to the former hospital, and the same was done with them. Finally, he sent his son to them, saying: “They will be ashamed of my son.” But the vinedressers, seeing their son, said to each other: “This is the heir; Let’s go, kill him and take possession of his inheritance.”
And they seized him, took him out of the vineyard and killed him.
So, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do with those vinedressers?”
Some of the listeners said to this:
“He will put these evildoers to an evil death, and he will give the vineyard to other vinedressers, who will give him the fruit in due season.”
And, confirming the truth of this answer, the Lord said. “Therefore the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who bear the fruits thereof.” This parable also indicates the Lord's care for the Jewish people; after all the mercies that God showed him, of course, one should have expected good fruits from him, but the Jews tortured and killed the prophets sent to them, and finally crucified Christ Himself, the Son of God.
However, the threats expressed in this parable can apply to all wicked and careless Christians. Countless mercies have been shown to us all; We have all been entrusted with a vineyard, from which the Lord expects fruit, for the teaching of the Lord has been revealed to us; We have been given the ability and strength so that you can understand the will of the Lord and serve Him faithfully in the state in which the Lord was pleased to place us.
PARABLES
about slaves waiting for the master
Matthew 24: 41 - 51; Mark 13:33-37
Jesus Christ often spoke to those listening to Him about the need to live in such a way as to always be prepared for death. We all know that death is inevitable, but none of us knows at what time our heavenly Father will be pleased to call us to himself. Let us try at all times to be ready to appear before Him in bright clothes, that is, with faith, love, with kind and good thoughts. “Be like,” Jesus said, “like servants waiting for their master to open the door for him. It will be good for those slaves if the master finds them awake, no matter what hour of the night he returns.
“If the master of the house knew at what time the thief would come, he would not sleep and would not allow his house to be undermined. Be ready, too, because you do not know at what time the master of the house will come.
Jesus also said: “The master has appointed a ruler or steward over his servants, to rule over them and to distribute food to them as they ought. It is good if, upon his return, the master finds a steward fulfilling his duties; he will put him over all his property. But if the steward says in his heart: “My master will not come soon,” he begins to beat the servants and maidservants, eat, drink and get drunk; and suddenly the master will come on a day when the steward is not expecting him, he will severely punish the steward and subject him to the same fate as the evildoers.”
The Lord commanded us all, as this steward, to fulfill our duties, which we all have—the king and the subject, the master and the servant, the rich and the poor, the small and the great. So, we must work with all our might so as not to become like an evil manager. Let us hasten to correct ourselves from our sins, without saying as he did: “My master will not come soon, I still have time.”
Each of us, of course, knows how harmful laziness and carelessness are, even in everyday affairs.
“Tomorrow I will reap my rye, tomorrow I will harvest my hay,” says the lazy peasant. And tomorrow a storm or rain will interfere with him, and everything will perish, while his hardworking neighbor has everything already done and put away. But much more harmful is mental laziness, because of which many put off the matter of correction until the wrong tomorrow. “Now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation,” says the Scripture. Let us begin, without delay, from today, to correct ourselves from our sins and let us do good with all our zeal. The more we hesitate, the more difficulties will arise. The habit of bad things grows in the soul, like bad weed in a garden, and drowns out the good. While the grass is still small, it is easy to weed; but the further you put it off, the thicker it grows and finally drowns out everything sown.
During Holy Week, the Church, calling us to spiritual deeds and to meeting the Lord, fills our ears with the following touching song:
“Behold, the bridegroom comes at midnight, and blessed is the servant, for he will be found watching; if he is not worthy again, he will find him despondent. Take care, my soul, not to be burdened with sleep, so that you will not be given over to death, and the kingdom will be shut out, but rise up, calling: Holy, holy, holy art thou God, have mercy on us through the Mother of God.”
PARABLE
about persistent prayer
Luke 18:1-8, 11:5-13
The Lord Jesus Christ often spoke to His disciples about prayer and taught them to pray. He spoke to them about the love of the Heavenly Father, about His goodness and mercy, and convinced them to approach Him with full trust that He loves us like a father of his children, even at a time when he hesitates to fulfill our prayers. Let us not become discouraged if sometimes the Lord God does not fulfill what we pray to Him for; we can be sure that this is being done for our own benefit; We ourselves do not know what exactly is good and useful for us, but the Lord knows this and, like a loving father, distributes His gifts in accordance with our spiritual benefit. Therefore, let us pray without losing heart and with complete trust in the goodness of God.
Wanting to convince His disciples not to weaken in prayer, the Lord told them the following parable: “In one city there was a judge who was not afraid of God and was not ashamed of people. In the same city there was a widow who asked the judge to protect her from harassment. But, finally, she got bored with him, and he said to himself: “Although I am not afraid of God and I am not ashamed of people, I will still fulfill her wish so that she leaves me alone.” “Will not God protect His chosen ones who cry out to Him day and night, although He is slow to protect them? - the Lord added. “I tell you that he will give them protection soon.” The Lord spoke another parable about that subject. “One day a man came to his friend at midnight and said to him, “Lend me three loaves of bread; A friend came to me, and I have nothing to treat him with.” “Don’t bother me,” he replied, “I already locked the door and went to bed with the children; I can’t get up and give it to you.” But he continued to beg him, and he finally stood up and gave him what he wanted.”
“Ask,” added the Lord, “and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you, for everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it is opened. Which father of you, when his son asks him for bread, would give him a stone? Or when he asks for fish, would you give him a snake? So if you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.”
What joy these words of the Lord should fill us with! The grace of the Holy Spirit is the highest and best gift we can receive, for it enlightens our souls and gives us strength to do good. We must pray for this highest good without ceasing. In general, we will be concerned not so much about temporary blessings as about eternal ones, for we do not know which temporary blessings are useful to us, and we will pray to the Lord for the gift of the Holy Spirit, for the forgiveness of our sins, for a good answer at His Last Judgment. Let us pray for all our neighbors, for relatives, for friends and for enemies, if we have them, for the suffering and unfortunate, and, entrusting ourselves to the merciful Heavenly Father, let us add from our hearts: “Thy will be done in everything, Lord!” The will of the Lord, His love and mercy are our most reliable support both in this century and in the future.
PARABLE
about the publican and the pharisee
Luke 18:9-14
Among those who listened to Jesus Christ there were people who thought of themselves that they were righteous, were exalted and humiliated others. Jesus told them the following parable: “Two men came to the church to pray: one was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing, prayed to himself like this: “God! I thank You that I am not like other people, robbers, offenders, libertines, or like this tax collector. I fast twice a week and give a tenth of everything I receive to the church.” The publican, standing in the distance, did not even dare to raise his eyes to heaven; but, striking himself on the chest, he said: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” “I tell you,” Jesus added, “that the publican left the church and went to his house “justified more than he” (i.e., the Pharisee). For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and everyone who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Pride is disgusting to God; There is no vice that would be more harmful to us than pride. It prevents us from noticing our own weaknesses and shortcomings, and who doesn’t have them? Even the best person has them, and therefore we should all repeat with heartfelt contrition the words of the publican: “God, be merciful to me a sinner!” The parable of the publican and the Pharisee is read in church several times before Lent to remind us of humility, without which there can be no repentance and correction. At the same time, the following church song or stichera is sung:
“Let us flee from the lofty words of the Pharisees, and let us learn from the high speeches of the publicans the high words of the humble, crying out in repentance: “Savior of the world, cleanse Thy servants.”
The Pharisee was not only proud of his own virtues, but also despised his neighbor. And this is a very big sin and disgusting to God. How can we despise a brother when the Lord Jesus Christ died for him? Moreover, we all have many of our own shortcomings, and we don’t know whether our brother is not atone for his shortcomings with virtues unknown to us? Let us be lenient in our judgments about our neighbor, remembering our own sins and how much we ourselves need leniency and mercy.
“Why do you look at the spoke in your brother’s eye,” Jesus once said, “but do not feel the beam in your own eye?” That is, that you condemn a small defect in your neighbor, while you do not notice your own great vice.
“Or,” Jesus continues, “whatever you can say to your brother; “Let me take the knitting needle out of your eye, while there is a log in your eye?”
“First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see the spoke taken out of your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:3-5).
PARABLES
about two sons
Matthew 21:28-32
Jesus Christ often denounced the Jewish teachers, who always spoke about the law and justice, but themselves did not act according to their words. About them He said, among other things, the following parable: “A certain man had two sons, and, approaching the first, he said: “Son! Go and work in my vineyard today.” He answered: “I don’t want to,” and then, having come to his senses, he left.
And, approaching the other son, the father said the same thing. This one said in response: “I’m going, father,” but he didn’t go. Which of the two fulfilled the will of his father?” The listeners said: “First.”
Indeed, the first, who did not want to fulfill his father’s orders at first, then, repenting, did so; and the second one only said that he would do it, but didn’t do it. His piety was only in words, and not in his heart; it was hypocrisy and a lie contrary to God. These were precisely the leaders of the Jews; who in words cared about faith and piety, but in reality were proud, envious and cruel people; they hated the Lord and put Him to death on the cross. A disobedient son who refused to fulfill the will of his father means those who for a long time did not fulfill the law of God, but then, having come to their senses, sincerely repented and became obedient and faithful servants of the Lord God.
PREPRICT
about ten virgins
Matthew 25:1 - 13
The parable of the ten virgins was told to teach listeners constant spiritual vigilance and readiness to meet the Lord when He comes to judge the living and the dead.
I must tell you that among the Jews, weddings were almost always celebrated in the evening; The bride and groom were escorted by girls holding lit lamps in their hands. This is what the Lord said:
“The kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who went out to meet the bridegroom. Of these, five were wise and five were foolish. The foolish ones took their lamps and took no oil with them. The wise took oil in their vessels along with their lamps. And as the groom slowed down, everyone dozed off and fell asleep. But at midnight a cry was heard: “Here is the groom coming, come out to meet Him.” The virgins woke up and began to adjust their lamps. The wise virgins burned brightly because they contained oil; but among the foolish they went out. And they said to the wise virgins: “Give us your oil, because our lamps are going out. But they answered: “So that there is no shortage then for both us and you, it’s better to go buy yourself some oil.” They went to buy, and in the meantime the groom came; the wise virgins went in with him to the wedding feast, and the doors were shut. After a while those virgins came and began knocking and saying: “Lord! God! Open to us,” but the groom answered: “Truly I tell you, I do not know you.” The Savior ended this story with the following words: “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour when the Son of Man will come.”
What do these words mean? They point to the hour of our death, when we will have to give an account to the Lord about our entire life. We do not know when the Lord will call us, and we must expect death, as the wise virgins expected the groom, with lit lamps, that is, with hearts filled with love for God and warm faith. If we are absent-minded and lazy, if we do not meditate on God and do good, then the Lord will not accept us into the kingdom of heaven and will also say to us: “Get out of here. I don't know you."
During Holy Week, on Maundy Tuesday, a song is sung in church, the content of which is borrowed from this parable. Here it is: “Let us love the groom, brothers, and decorate our candles; shining in virtues and right faith, so that, like the wise virgins of the Lord, we are ready to go with him to marriage: the Bridegroom is a gift, like God, who gives an imperishable crown to everyone.”
Let us pray more often for this crown of incorruption, which the good and the faithful will receive in the kingdom of heaven.
PARABLE
about talents
Matthew 25: 14 – 30
The Son of Man, said the Lord, will act at the Last Judgment like one master, who, going to a distant country, entrusted his property to his servants. To one slave he gave five talents, to another slave he gave two talents, and to a third one. This master was wise and distributed his money to the slaves, taking into account their abilities. During his absence, the first worked, labored, traded with the money given to him and thus acquired five more talents; the one who received two talents did the same and worked out the other two; but the one who received one talent went and buried it in the ground. Finally, the master returned and demanded from his slaves an account of the money he had left them.
The first one who received five talents brought the other five talents and said: “Sir! You gave me five talents; I bought the other five with them.”
The master said to him: “Well done, good and faithful servant! In little things you were faithful; I will put you over many things; enter into the joy of your master.”
In the same way, the one who received two talents brought the other two acquired by his labor, and heard the same praise from the master.
The one who had received one talent came up and said: “Sir! I knew that you are a cruel man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter, and, being afraid, I went and hid your talent in the ground; here’s yours.” - “You wicked and lazy slave! - the gentleman told him. “If you were afraid of me, then why didn’t you trade, work, or bring me other talent?” Then I would receive my goods at a profit.” Then he turned to the other slaves and said: “Take his talent and give it to the one who has ten; and throw this evil slave to where there is eternal weeping and gnashing of teeth, for the one who has will always be given even more, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
In this parable, Jesus Christ compares Himself to the Lord. Who are the slaves? This is all of us. The money that the master distributed to his slaves is all those qualities and abilities that the Lord gives us: mind, memory, strength of soul and body, health, wealth. We must use all this for good deeds to fulfill the will of God. We should not bury our talent in the ground, that is, we should not destroy our abilities and strengths in laziness and sinful pleasures. And how many people do this? How many children who have all the means to learn, but are lazy and inattentive, who could be pious and kind, but behave badly! How many adults who could please God by helping their families, and who are ruining their minds, health, and time in sins! How many rich people use their wealth for evil! How scary to think about the punishment that awaits lazy and unfaithful slaves! But before the hour of our death has come, each of us can correct ourselves. Let us firmly decide to begin a virtuous life, let us ask God to help us make a good beginning, and let us stir our hearts with the words of a church song. “Having heard the condemnation of the one who hid his talent, do not hide the word of God about your soul, proclaim His wonders, so that by multiplying your talent, you may enter into the joy of Your Lord.”
PARABLE
about the employee
Luke 17:7-10
One day the Lord said to His disciples: “If any of you has a worker cultivating his field or tending his flock, will he say to him upon his return from the field: “Go quickly, sit down at the table?” On the contrary, will he not say to him: “Bring me supper and serve me while I eat and drink, and then eat and drink yourself?” Will he thank his servant for carrying out the order? Don't think. So you too, when you have fulfilled everything commanded to you, say: “We are slaves, worthless, because we only did what we had to do.”
But can the best of us say that he has fulfilled all that was due? Let us remember with what laziness, with what carelessness we perform even the easiest daily duties. And in relation to the Lord, can we even think that we have fulfilled everything we should? After all, everything we have belongs to Him. Our heart, our thoughts, our strength, our abilities, our time, everything belongs to Him. These are all means given to us to glorify His name and do His will. Is this how we use what has been entrusted to us? What about the good deeds of the Lord? Can we count and measure them? He created us, gave us all the blessings, loved us, sinners and unworthy. The only begotten Son of God died on the cross to save us. Can we ever think of deserving such favors? Of course not. But we must thank God every hour and try to prove our gratitude through our deeds, through our entire lives, by doing everything commanded to us with love and zeal.
PARABLE
about the lost sheep and the lost drachma
Luke 15:3-10
Jesus Christ in many parables spoke about God’s love for us, He said that the Heavenly Father desires correction for every sinner and provides the means for this. This same subject is the content of the parable of the lost sheep. Here are the words of the Savior:
“Which of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go looking for the lost one until he finds it? And having found it, he will bring it home with joy and say to his friends and neighbors: “Rejoice with me: I have found my lost sheep.”
“So in heaven there is more joy over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who do not need to repent.”
A lost sheep is a sinner who has departed from God; but just as a shepherd goes to look for a lost sheep, so the Lord God wants to bring the sinner back to himself with the word of the Gospel, the promise of mercy and forgiveness. And if the sinner finally turns away from sin and with warm prayer and repentance runs back to God, firmly deciding to correct himself, then the Lord God Himself rejoices and all the holy angels rejoice.
So, you should never lose heart and doubt the mercy of the Lord. The Church offers us its help and its prayers so that we improve. When we fast and repent of all our sins in order to receive forgiveness, then we must make a firm intention to correct ourselves and start a new, better life. And the Lord God will gladly accept our repentance and help us fulfill our good intentions.
For the same purpose - to depict love and mercy for the repentant sinner - Jesus Christ told the following parable:
“What woman, having ten drachmas (a small coin), if she loses one drachma, does not light a candle, sweep the room and search carefully until she finds it?
And having found it, she will call her friends and neighbors and say: “Rejoice with me: I have found the lost drachma.”
Thus, I tell you, there is joy among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
PARABLE
about the good shepherd and the hired servant
John 10:1-16
In the parable of the good shepherd, the Lord again depicts His love for people. “I am the good shepherd,” He said. - The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep; But the hireling, who is not the shepherd and whose sheep are not his own, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs, and the wolf plunders them. But the hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd and I know Mine, and Mine know Me. As the Father knows Me, so I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep which are not of this fold; but these also I must bring, and they will hear My voice, and there will be one flock and one Shepherd.
In this parable, Jesus Christ called Himself a shepherd, and compared all people to sheep. He loved all people so much that he accepted death to save them and to give them eternal life. With the same parable He teaches us that we must obey the saving teaching of Christ and must listen to those shepherds and teachers who are elected by the Church to this dignity, and, on the contrary, must avoid such teachers who teach contrary to the true God-appointed shepherds of the Church.
“Truly, truly, I say to you,” said the Lord, “I am the door of the sheep; Whoever enters by Me will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy. I came that they might have life, and have it more abundantly.”
By this, Jesus showed that only through faith in Him can a person enter the kingdom of heaven, that there is only one true faith - Christian faith, and one path to salvation - faith and love for God.
There are still peoples in distant countries who do not know the Christian faith; but pious people undertake journeys there to preach the Gospel to them and to enlighten them. The Church prays that everyone will join the one incorruptible Church; and we firmly hope that the time will come when everyone will hear the holy truth and there will be, in the words of the Lord, “one flock and one Shepherd.”
PARABLE
about the rich man and Lazarus
Luke 16:19 - 31
The rich must remember that wealth was given to them in order to make good use of it, to help the poor and do good. And if the rich forget this and live only to please themselves, a strict account will be required from them, if not in this life, then in the future. To explain this, the Savior told the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.
“Some man was rich. He dressed in expensive clothes and feasted luxuriously every day.
There was also a howl of a beggar named Lazarus, who, sick and wounded, lay at the rich man’s gate and wanted to be fed with the crumbs falling from the rich man’s table; and the dogs licked his wounds.
The beggar died, and the angels carried his soul to Abraham’s bosom, that is, to heaven. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, being in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham in the distance and Lazarus in his bosom and, crying out, said: “Father Abraham! Have mercy on me, send Lazarus so that he may dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in the fire.” But Abraham answered: “Child, remember that you prospered in your life, but Lazarus was poor; now he is consoled here, and you suffer. And besides this, a great gulf has been established between us and you, so that those who want to cross from here to you cannot, nor can they cross from there to us.
Then the rich man said: “So I ask you, father, send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers: let him warn them so that they do not come to this place of torment.”
Abraham told him “They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen to them.” But he objected: “No, Father Abraham, but if someone from the dead comes to them, they will repent.” Then Abraham said: “If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets; then even if someone has risen from the dead, they will not believe it.
We have more than Moses and the prophets, we have the word of Jesus Christ Himself, Who told us that in the future life everyone will be rewarded according to his deeds, that there will be strictly exacted punishment from those who did not use the means given to them properly, and those who They endured all kinds of hardships and suffering with faith and patience, did not grumble, did not envy, and lived honestly. The rich man spoken of in the parable is condemned not because he was rich, but because, having all the means to do good and help his neighbor, he did not do this, but lived only for himself.
PARABLE
about the prodigal son
Luke 15:11-32
You remember what Jesus said about the joy that comes in heaven when a sinner is reformed. He explained the same truth in the following parable, showing the love and mercy of our heavenly Father:
“A certain man had two sons; the youngest of them said to his father: “Father! Give me the next portion of the estate.” And the father divided the estate to his sons. Soon the youngest son, having collected everything, went to a distant country and there squandered his property, living dissolutely.
When he had lived through everything, a great famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need. He pestered one of the inhabitants of that country, and he sent him into the field to graze pigs. And he was glad when he could eat pig feed, but no one gave it to him. Having come to his senses, he said: “How many of my father’s hired servants are content with bread in abundance, while I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father and tell him:
"Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you and am no longer worthy to be called your son, accept me as one of your hired servants.”
He got up and went to his father. And when he was still far away, his father saw him and took pity on him, ran and, throwing himself on his neck, began to kiss him. The son told him: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” And the father said to his servants; “Bring the best clothes and dress him, put a ring on his hand and shoes on his feet. And bring the fatted calf, and kill it; Let us eat and be merry, for this my son was dead and is alive again, he was lost and is found.” And they started having fun.
The eldest son was in the field; returning home, he heard singing and rejoicing. Calling one of the servants, he asked what this meant. He answered him: “Your brother came, and your father killed the fatted calf, because he received it healthy.” The eldest son became angry and did not want to enter. Then his father came out and called him. But he said to his father: “I have served you for so many years and always followed your orders, but you never gave me even a kid so that I could have fun with my friends. And when that son of yours came, who had squandered his property and lived dissolutely, you killed the fatted calf for him.” The father said to him: “My son! You are always with me, and everything that is mine is yours. And in this you should rejoice and be glad, that your brother was dead and is alive again, that he was lost and is found.”
How kind this father is, who joyfully accepted his repentant son and went to meet him halfway! This Father is God Himself, Who joyfully accepts the repentant sinner. It seems that the greatest sinner, having read this parable, should be encouraged and go back to such a kind and tender-hearted Father.
But how many are there who, having received property from God: strength, abilities, health, wealth, intelligence, instead of using all this well, squander their property in a distant country, that is, they move away from God and forget about Him and about His commandments, living in sin, laziness and carelessness. But if, in the midst of this pitiful and empty life, repentance and a sincere desire to return to the Father awaken in them, believe me, He Himself will help them in turning to the path of virtue, He Himself will, as it were, come out to meet them, strengthening their good intentions in their hearts. He will receive them not only with mercy, but also with joy and love, like a father to his children.
The Church reminds us of this parable in order to encourage us with the mercy of the Lord and turn us to repentance. On the week called the week of the Prodigal Son, before Maslenitsa, the following hymn or stichera is read and sometimes sung: “Good Father, I have departed from You; do not leave me and do not show me as indecent for Your kingdom; the all-evil enemy exposed me and took my wealth, I prodigally squandered Your gifts. But I turn to You and cry: create me as one from Your hired servants, You, for my sake, stretched out Your most pure hands on the cross to snatch me from the fierce beast, clothe me in the first garment, as one who is abundantly merciful.”
PARABLE
about a king going to war
Luke 14:31 - 33
Jesus once said to His disciples: “What king, going to war against another king, does not first sit down and consult whether he is able with ten thousand to withstand the one coming against him with twenty thousand?
Otherwise, when he is still far away, he will send to ask for peace.”
With this parable, Jesus wanted to say that anyone who wants to follow Him, that is, to become a real Christian, must gather all his strength, understand all the difficulties, so as not to weaken on the way and not return, afraid of the difficulties: he must turn to God for help , for he will face struggle, hardship and labor. He will have to fight against various temptations, against laziness, often against his own will, which is sometimes dangerous to follow. He must be ready to renounce all pleasure and all benefit, the achievement of which involves violating the law of Christ, and must often undergo suffering and labor in order to remain faithful to God. Therefore, he needs to arm himself with strength, patience and strong will; but all this will not be enough if he does not first ask for the Lord’s help. And God will hear his sincere prayer and help his weakness. Christ supported Peter in the midst of a stormy sea; He will also support those who trust in Him and sincerely desire to serve Him. In the midst of danger, He will support a Christian with faith and hope, in the midst of suffering and adversity He will give him peace of mind, and in return for earthly blessings He will give him eternal heavenly blessings.
How insignificant all hardships, labors and sufferings will seem to us if we are worthy to be one of those whom the Lord will call blessed of His Father and accept into the heavenly kingdom.
Biblical parables... The history of centuries and peoples, cast in charming short stories. They are poetic and wise, beautiful and rich. Like ships, parables travel the waves of time and carry precious cargo to future generations - they teach to believe, love and not give up. Parables about the sower, the good seed and the tares, the talents, the prodigal son, the widow's mite and the ten lepers... On the pages of the book these images will come to life in their pristine freshness. The book contains 41 parables of Jesus Christ.
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The given introductory fragment of the book Biblical parables. Plots and reflections (Vladimir Leonov) provided by our book partner - the company liters.
Parables of Jesus Christ
Parables of Christ - the basis of Christianity
The basis of Christian teaching is found in the life, miracles, parables and teachings of Jesus Christ. All prayers, services throughout the year, holidays, the history of the Church, moral teaching, teaching about life, everything, everything in Christianity comes from there.
To make it easier to understand and remember His teaching, Jesus spoke in parables. A parable is an instructive story in an allegorical form.
When Jesus Christ walked the earth, he preached to people about the Kingdom of Heaven. Both educated nobles and commoners listened to him.
To explain His teaching to them more clearly, Christ spoke in parables. Based on simple examples from ordinary human life, He spoke about the truth in a living manner.
As a literary work, the parable of Christ is one of the most capacious literary genres. In one parable of a few lines, Jesus can say so much that it applies to thousands of cases in all times and peoples.
The parables of Christ can be divided in accordance with the three periods of the earthly preaching of the Savior. The first group includes parables told by Christ shortly after the Sermon on the Mount, in the period between the second and third Easter. These include the parables of the sower, the tares, the invisibly growing seed, the mustard seed, the pearl of great price, and others.
The second group of parables was told by Christ towards the end of the third year of His earthly preaching. These include the parables of the lost sheep, the prodigal son, the unmerciful debtor, the good Samaritan, the foolish rich man, the wise builder, the unjust judge, and others.
The last parables of Christ were told shortly before the sufferings on the cross. These are the parables of the barren fig tree, of the evil vinedressers, of those invited to the evening, of the talents, of the ten virgins, of the workers who received equal pay, and some others.
In His parables, Christ often took examples from nature or contemporary social, economic and religious life.
Why did Jesus speak in parables?
The reason why Jesus chose the allegorical form for his sermon is indicated, in particular, in the Gospel of Matthew:
And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” He answered them: because it has been given to you to know the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but it has not been given to them, for whoever has, more will be given to him and he will have an increase, and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him; Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, and they do not understand.
Christ presented His teachings in the form of parables for several reasons. He spoke about deep spiritual truths that were not easy for His listeners to comprehend. And a specific and vivid story, drawn from life, could be remembered for a long time, and a person trying to understand the meaning of this story could reflect on it, delve into its content and, thus, gradually understand the wisdom hidden in it.
Jesus Christ used parables partly in order to hide the true meaning of His words and create the impression of a double meaning, in order to hide for the time being what He should have revealed. The church that Christ intended to create was so different from everything that was expected of the Messiah that He had to be extremely restrained and careful.
And so He used parables to illustrate the true origin, development, mixed character and consummation of the Church or Kingdom, which to our understanding seems very simple, but which was a mystery to the contemporaries of Jesus.
In addition, people who do not fully understand the teachings of Christ could interpret it in their own way, spreading it in a distorted form. Parables preserved the purity of Christ's teaching by putting its content into the form of a specific narrative.
Parables also have the advantage over direct teaching that they not only contain the general Divine law, but demonstrate its applicability in both private and public life.
Christ's parables are distinguished by their simplicity in the selection of subjects: seeing a sown field, he tells the parable of the sower. Knowing that his disciples are mostly fishermen, he tells them a parable about fishing. Thus, the plots of the parables are borrowed from the surrounding reality, understandable to the listeners.
« Parables involuntarily capture the listener and reader, forcing them to become involved in the experiences of the characters. The laconic and vivid imagery of the parables, their poetic structure and visual devices (hyperbole, metaphors, contrasts, unexpected endings) helped them to be quickly memorized.».
The number of parables of Jesus Christ is difficult to count, since sometimes they include short sayings in the form of metaphors (for example, "You are the salt of the earth"(Matt.). There are more than thirty parables, which are complete short stories.
Christ Himself answered the disciples’ question why He spoke allegorically: “ For those who by seeing do not see, and by hearing do not hear, parables reveal secrets that infinitely surpass the understanding of an ordinary person, and therefore were previously hidden from him. The bliss of the Kingdom of Heaven cannot be imposed by force, but only accepted by the heart, gained through suffering.”
A distinctive feature of the Gospel parables is the clarity of familiar, everyday things, without any hint of mystery, which is inherent in the parables of the Eastern sages. Christ selects such an ordinary image that would best enlighten the mind and direct the thought to the hidden, which makes up the meaning of what is said.
A parable is a small invented, even sometimes fabulous, story that illustrates some thought of Jesus Christ, some point of His Teaching.
Parables were known in Judaism from the time of Christ; a large number of parables from various rabbis and sages have reached us. Christ also uses this genre, but He raises the genre of parables to an unattainable height. Before Christ, parables were not so popular, but Christ constantly uses them: through them it is very convenient for Him to express His thoughts.
Why are parables so useful for expressing the thoughts of Christ? Because Christ addresses as many people as possible. At that time there was no media, it was impossible to record your sermon and teaching. Therefore, it was necessary to “package” it in some form so that this teaching could be passed on to others. But when people pass something to each other, you know, the effect of damaged phones arises, already on the 10th person everything becomes completely confused and distorted.
And now imagine Christ.
He says difficult but profound things. For example, he talks about God’s mercy towards the fallen or the coming of the Kingdom of God... Through tenth, and even more so hundredth, hands His Teaching, if it is not formalized in such a way that it is passed on from one to another intact, could be completely distorted. But when Christ tells a parable, this small bright story, the teaching transmitted by people, clothed in such a form, remains intact. Therefore, parables are very convenient for broadcasting and conveying teaching so that it does not dissolve or become distorted in people’s minds.
In addition, a parable is an allegorical story about some theological position. If Christ had openly spoken about something, it would have been easy to find fault with the words and accuse Him of violating certain Jewish ideas and Old Testament laws.
And when Jesus tells a parable, it’s difficult to find fault with Him. Remember, He says to the Apostles: “to you it has been given to know the secrets of the Kingdom of God, but to others in parables” (Luke). In private, Christ told everything to his disciples, and to the rest - in parables: those who are smart will understand, but those who are stupid will not understand, but the main thing is that it will be difficult to accuse Christ.
And, of course, let’s not forget that Christ wanted to interest his listeners, and a parable, that is, a figurative miniature that is a pleasure to listen to and then solve, was a convenient genre for conveying His thoughts.
In the Gospel we find more than 30 parables. There are big ones that we all know: About the Sower, About the Prodigal Son. And there are small parables, literally one or two lines, but these are real little pearls. And all parables form a kind of moral and spiritual necklace. Take away the parables and we would lose an essential part of the Gospel.
In addition, parables are the direct speech of Christ.
Remember, in the Gospel we read that Christ did not push anyone away, but invited everyone to Himself, arranged feasts at which even unworthy people were present, those people with whom a worthy Jew would not sit at the same table and would not eat. These are, for example, tax collectors, harlots, and the poor of the world. Jesus shows that from now on salvation has come to the world, He wants to attract all people to Himself, there is enough love for everyone, and everyone is called to start a new life. Other, less significant themes are also raised in the parables, which we will mention later.
I will give a list of the parables of Christ and indicate where and in which Gospels to look for them:
1. About the sower: Matt.; Mk.; Mk.; OK.; OK.;
2. About the good seed and the tares: Matt.; Mf;
3. About the mustard seed: Matt.;
4. About leaven: Matt.;
5. About the treasure hidden in the field: Matt.;
6. About a merchant looking for good pearls: Matt.;
7. About a net thrown into the sea: Matt.;
8. About the unmerciful debtor: Matt.;
9. About the workers in the vineyard: Matt.;
10. About two sons: Matt.;
11. About the evil winegrowers: Matt.; Mk.; OK.;
12. Parable of the prudent servant: Matt.;
13. About ten virgins: Matt.;
14. About talents: Matthew; OK.;
15. About the seed growing in the earth in an inconspicuous way: Mark;
16. About two debtors: Luke;
17. About the Good Samaritan: Luke;
18. About a man asking his friend for bread at midnight: Luke;
19. About the foolish rich man: Luke;
20. About the barren fig tree in the vineyard: Luke;
21. About the wedding feast: Matt.; OK.;
22. About the lost sheep: Matt.; OK.;
23. About the lost drachma: Luke;
24. About the prodigal son: Luke;
25. About the unfaithful steward: Luke;
26. About the rich man and Lazarus: Luke;
27. About the worker who came from the field: Luke;
28. About the unrighteous judge: Luke;
29. About the Pharisee and the tax collector: Luke;
30. About ten mines: Lk.
31. Parable of the fig tree and the trees: Luke;
32. About the good shepherd and the hired servant: John;
33. On gratitude (about the ten lepers): Luke;
34. About the widow's mite: Luke;
And others…
And lastly: addressed by Christ to a specific audience, these parables are relevant for all times and for all people.
Christ's first audience is Jews. What does the parable tell these direct listeners of Christ, how it explodes their philistine worldview, what is it calling them, the listeners of Christ, to?.. What new did they hear, and why, choking with excitement, they said: “Never has a man spoken like this Man" (John).
The parables of Christ are remarkable because, despite the passage of centuries and despite the fact that they were told in another civilization, in another language, they do not lose any of their clarity, relevance and beauty. Parables are living witnesses to the close unity that exists between the spiritual and physical worlds, between the internal cause and its manifestation in life.
Many books that only yesterday smelled of printing ink have become a thing of the past or have fallen onto dusty shelves, thereby sinking into oblivion. They didn’t leave any trace on us, didn’t tell us anything, didn’t touch us in any way - they remained “dead.”
And the parables of Christ, such miniature stories, so simple, elementary in appearance, unpretentious and unpretentious, and at the same time so amazing in word and image, are filled with unquenchable life. We reach out to them, we read them, we listen to them - they are like beacons illuminating the very depths of our lives, and they speak as if to us, as if only about us and concerning only us. And we feel something happening to us, so sincere and so frank.
1. Parable of the Sower
« Jesus told the people the parable of the sower: “Behold, a sower went out to sow; and as he sowed, some fell by the road, and birds came and devoured them; some fell on rocky places where there was little soil, and soon sprang up because the soil was shallow. When the sun rose, it withered and, as if it had no root, withered away; some fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew and choked it; some fell on good soil and bore fruit: one a hundredfold, and another sixty, and another thirty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
Then Jesus explained to the disciples the meaning of this parable: “To everyone who hears the word about the kingdom and does not understand, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in his heart - this is what is sown by the wayside.
And what is sown on rocky places means one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; but it has no root in itself and is fickle: when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, it is immediately tempted. And what was sown among thorns means one who hears the word, but the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
What is sown on good soil means one who hears the word and understands it, and who bears fruit, so that some bear fruit a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.”
And Jesus went out of the house that day and sat down by the sea. And a great multitude gathered unto Him, so that He entered into a boat, and sat down; and all the people stood on the shore...
A comment
Many people want to listen to Christ, and he gets into a boat, which sails a little from the shore - the water reflects and transfers sound very well. Thus, if you preach from the water, the sound reaches people very well. In addition, the shore of Lake Galilee is flat, so all people see and hear Christ well, no one pushes Him away, pulls Him towards them, or surrounds Him in a dense crowd. Christ can swim along the shore, or he can simply sit in a boat, sailing a few meters from the shore. The Savior teaches...
…And he taught them many parables, saying: Behold, a sower went out to sow; and as he sowed, some fell by the road, and birds came and devoured them; some fell on rocky places where there was little soil, and soon sprang up because the soil was shallow.
A comment
Christ means that the sower has vast spaces to sow, and he has a lot of grain. What is the grain here? This is the Word of God, the Word of the preaching of Jesus Christ. But is it only word, as something pronounced with the lips, lips?
In the Old Testament, especially among the prophets, the expression is often found The Word of God. The prophets meant in a word not just a sermon, but the active actions of God in our world. This is what the prophet Isaiah writes: “Just as rain and snow come down from heaven and do not return there, but water the earth and make it capable of giving birth and growth, so that it gives seed to those who sow, and bread to those who eat, so is the word Mine, which proceeds from My mouth, does not return to Me void, but does what I please, and accomplishes what I sent it for...” (Isa.).
And Christ, when he speaks about this, means in a word not only the sermon, but also His works, all the amazing things that He will do. That is, Christ, by His activity, reveals God to people, reveals the will of God. That's what this amazing sowing means, the sowing of Jesus Christ.
And the task of people is to become that good soil that will accept the actions, the preaching of Christ, see what Christ proclaims, understand and follow Christ. But people very often remained, as they still do today, indifferent to this, inattentive. So Christ warns that not every seed, unfortunately, will germinate or bear fruit:
...Some things fell along the road, and birds flew in and devoured them; some fell on rocky places where there was little soil, and soon sprang up because the soil was shallow. When the sun rose, it withered and, as if it had no root, withered away; some fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew and choked it; some fell on good soil and bore fruit: one a hundredfold, and another sixty, and another thirty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!..
...But listen to the [meaning] of the parable of the sower: to everyone who hears the word about the Kingdom and does not understand, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in his heart - this is who is meant by what was sown along the way. And what is sown on rocky places means one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; but it has no root in itself and is fickle: when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, it is immediately tempted. And what was sown among thorns means one who hears the word, but the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
This parable is unique in that Christ not only tells it, but also comments here and gives the key to its understanding. In the time of Jesus Christ, birds meant demons in Jewish literature. That is, just as birds fly in and, having fluttered, disappear, demons appear just as quickly and steal the good from the soul. Here Jesus means that a person sees Him, hears His Word, and, it would seem, something enters the soul, but then either some pagan temptations or demonic actions wash away from the person’s soul all the good that he has perceived, seeing Christ.
Sown on rocky places..Who is this about? Christ had in mind those Jews who accepted the sermon, but then, encountering misunderstandings from others, family, society, and persecution from the authorities, abandon Christ and renounce their faith.
What was sown among thorns... Like thorns, these thorns, weeds that choke the good seed, so in the souls of many people this temptation with pleasures and riches drowns out the truth... The vanity of the world and the temptations of this age encourage a person to leave the faith, even if at first he was carried away by the new faith, and to return to the old life with the old faith (in this case, pagan).
…What was sown on good soil means one who hears the word and understands, who is fruitful, so that some bear fruit a hundredfold, another sixty, and another thirty.
From one grain grows an ear that has 30 grains, 60 or 100! Christ did not mean anything specific. Christ simply meant that His Word grows differently in each person! We are talking about different types of plants: rye, wheat, spelt... - everyone bears different fruits. And the meaning of the last part is that we are all different, unique in our own way and arrange life in our own way as the fruit of our labor.
On the shore of the Sea of Galilee, many people gathered to Jesus Christ. He got into the boat, sailed a little from the shore and taught the people in parables.
“The sower went to sow. When he was sowing, one seed fell near the road and was trampled, and the birds pecked it; another fell on a rocky place where there was little earth; it sprouted, but soon withered because it had no moisture for the root; another seed fell into a weed, and the weed choked it; the other fell into good soil and bore abundant fruit.”
Then Jesus Christ explained the parable to his disciples this way: the seed is the word of God, the sower is the one who preaches this word, and the earth is the human heart. Seed falling near the road, means scattered people, from whom the devil easily takes away what they sow.
rocky ground- these are fickle people who joyfully listen to the word of God, but it does not take root in their soul, and at the first temptation or persecution they fall away from the faith.
Weed means worldly problems bots and human vices that drown out the word of God in the soul.
Under the good earth The parable refers to people who eagerly accept the word of God and try to fulfill it.
Empty ear
The fields are ripening under the sun,
Drinks the last juice from the earth,
And among the fields it’s lonely
A tall spikelet sticks out.
Tired ears bend
Under the weight of grains on my shoulders,
And he never stops reaching out,
Bathing in the sun's rays.
He is taller than everyone else, he is closer to the sky,
He is the chosen one, he is difficult,
Let the brothers think about bread,
And it is special - empty!
The upstarts have a simple moral:
They don't like menial work
But everywhere they pretend to succeed.
They have one cherished dream,
Just one, but the main concern is
At any cost, appear above everyone else!
(Fable of a modern schoolboy)Commentary II (interpretation)
The sower went out to sow:
The image is borrowed from an occupation known to everyone, and therefore understandable to everyone.
Sowing- a wonderful image of preaching the word of God, which, falling on the heart, depending on its state, remains fruitless or bears fruit.
Others fell:
“Christ did not say that He Himself (the sower) abandoned, but that the seed fell” (John Chrysostom).
On the road:
which goes through the field, therefore - in a solid place that was not cultivated and in which the seed did not fall into the ground, but lay on its surface, where birds could find it and peck it.
One hundred times, etc.:
depending on how much the soil is fertilized and prepared for sowing, because even in one field, the seed does not produce the same amount of fruit in every place.
To everyone who hears the word, etc.:
seed means the word of God communicated to man either by oral preaching or through the Holy Scriptures.
To those who do not understand:
Whose mind is so darkened or so hardened by rudeness, and the heart is so hardened in sin, that he does not understand and does not accept the word of God, which lies, so to speak, on the surface of the mind and heart of such a person, without taking root inside, lies like a seed on the road, open to all passers-by, birds and wind.
The evil one comes:
Satan or a demon, who in the parable is represented by the image of a bird or birds pecking at a seed lying on the surface of the road and not taking root.
He who hears a word and immediately receives it with joy O:
these are those who, hearing the preaching of the Gospel, are carried away by it as if it were good news, sometimes even sincerely, sincerely; they like it, they find it pleasant, they find pleasure in listening to it. But the word does not take root in their minds and hearts, for such people are fickle, frivolous and fearful.
When tribulation or persecution comes because of the word:
when it is necessary to make any sacrifice for the sake of the Gospel, they are tempted, betray their faith and the Gospel - they fall like grass without a deep root, scorched by the rays of the sun; their faith is not strong enough to endure these temptations; it has no root in the heart.
In thorns:
thorns mean worries about temporary goods and especially the deception of wealth, which absorb people's time and attention, leaving neither enough for the satisfaction and greater disclosure of spiritual needs. In particular, wealth seduces; although it usually does not give the benefits that it promises, it binds a person more and more to itself and - so often to the point of death, “which is why the love of money is considered the matter of all evil” (1 Tim.).
It is no wonder, therefore, that it drowns out the word sown in the heart, and the word remains fruitless in such a person. “Christ did not say: the age, but the care of the age; did not say: wealth, but the deception of wealth. So let us blame not the things themselves, but the corrupted will; for it is possible to have wealth and not be deceived by it, and to live in this age and not be overwhelmed by worries. And Jesus Christ said well: the flattery of wealth, because everything in wealth is flattery, only names, not reality; pleasure, glory, pomp and everything like this are only a ghost, and not the real truth” (John Chrysostom, Theophylact of Bulgaria).
The Sage and the Flatterer
(fable of a modern schoolboy)
The world has long known that flattery is vile,
She is scourged by Russian satire,
However, since the time of the Holy Fathers
There are no fewer flatterers in the world.
In a remote forest there is one venerable Eagle Owl
He was known as a sage because of his convolutions.
With his great mind he taught half the world,
Worked from dusk to dawn
At the same time, he did not have a secretary.
One day Owl spotted the Bullfinch -
He was standing at the door with an offering,
Trying to sweeten the request with flattery:
“For me you are a capital Bird,
The eagle is no match for you,
I really hope we will understand each other.
I won’t hide: I would like to see a friend in you,
But you are friends with a high mind,
That's why you don't need friends
Especially simple bullfinches.
Just take me as your secretary
Let you serve in your declining years."
The sage answered without preamble:
“I myself like to work, without support,
There are only costs to helping someone else.
A wise man cannot be friends with a flatterer,
And you and I can’t serve together.”
On the good earth:
a good land is a person with a pure heart open to the action of the word, like the earth open to rain and the rays of the sun.
2. Parable of the good seed and the tares
He proposed another parable to them, saying: The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; while the people were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went away; When the greenery sprang up and the fruit appeared, then the tares also appeared.
Having come, the servants of the householder said to him: Master! did you not sow good seed in your field? where does the tares come from? He said to them, “The enemy of man has done this.” And the slaves said to him: Do you want us to go and choose them?
But he said: no, so that when you choose the tares, you do not pull up the wheat along with them, leave both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather up first the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, and put the wheat into my barn..
A comment
Burdock seeds, as well as other weeds, were also sold in markets - these seeds were used for medicinal purposes, for example, for brewing, for preparing ointments, etc. It is known that in Judaism there were some people who, when they wanted to harm their enemy, purchased or themselves prepared the seeds of some thorns, put them in bags, came to their enemy’s field at night and sowed them. They sprang up, and the person did not understand what was happening: why his good grain, his crops were being drowned out by weeds, in Slavic - by tares.
It's the same story here. The slaves came to the owner and said: “What is it? The weeds have sprung up, let’s go, pull them out and weed the beds!” And the owner said: “No, it is not necessary that, while pulling out the tares, we do not accidentally pull out the wheat. Leave both until the harvest. (After all, it was not yet entirely clear, I’ll explain where the good seedlings are and where the weeds are. Only greenery, only grass appeared, and it was easy to confuse.) Well, during the harvest, when it will be obvious where the good crops are and where the weeds are, We’ll gather everything and burn the weeds.”
These words that the weeds will be burned hint at the Last Judgment. The Last Judgment with fire is an Old Testament image. The prophets predicted that when God comes to judge the Universe, it will be accompanied by fire, the Universe will be melted down. It is not necessary to understand in the literal sense that this is fire. These are Old Testament images of disaster; it was believed that the end of the world would be accompanied by various disasters.
What does Christ mean in this parable? That the Word of God is sown! The Word of God does not simply mean the oral preaching of Christ. The Hebrew “dabar” - the word of God - means every word and action of God, that is, every revelation of the power and purpose of God. Christ reveals this, so to speak, Word all the time: through preaching, and through miracles, and through resurrections...
Christ says with this parable: I preach to you, Jews (do not forget that Christ is addressing the Jews, and the parables are primarily addressed to the Jews!)! And it’s good that there are shoots, good grains are growing. But there are also many people who are embittered against Me as the Messenger of the Heavenly Father, who oppose Me, and are plotting something. Yes, there are tares, and many of them. Well, never mind, there will be a Court that will put everything in its place.
Christ consoles us with this parable so that we do not worry, so that we understand that such a situation, when there are embittered tares, is part of God’s plan; God knows this will happen...
But, what is very important: people who behave unworthily are given the opportunity to repent. The judgment of the tares is postponed until the end, until the harvest, in our case - until our death. Today you may be tares, thorns and thorns, today you are neither good nor evil, but you are not deprived of a chance to be saved if you change your point of view. God endures for a long time. He does not call His servants, the Angels, to weed His crops. Let everything grow until the time of Judgment.
Commentary on the parable of the wheat and tares
Kingdom of heaven:
The kingdom of Christ on earth, in relation to the different spiritual and moral state of people, is likened to a field itself, dotted with good seed, and since the main figure here is the sower, it is said that it is like a man who sowed.
When did people sleep?
that is, at night, when things may not be visible to anyone.
The enemy has arrived:
owner's ill-wisher.
And he sowed tares among the wheat:
tares - grass, “everything that grows among the wheat to its detriment, such as cockle, crane peas, wild oats and other things not characteristic of wheat (Theophylact of Bulgaria).
Then the tares also appeared:
At the beginning of vegetation, weeds are completely similar in appearance to wheat and sprouts of other seeds, and only over time, with further growth, can they be distinguished.
Householder's slaves:
“they are introduced only for the sake of consistency of the image” (John Chrysostom).
Choosing the chaff:
The roots of grass and seeds are so intertwined with each other that there is a danger, while uprooting the tares, to uproot the wheat itself along with them.
Harvests:
when both the wheat and the grass are ripe, then it is more convenient to separate one from the other, without harm to the first. The meaning of this parable is further explained by God himself.
He who sows is the Son of Man th:
Christ sows the good seed of the word of God, i.e. He preaches the Gospel, both himself personally during his earthly life, and afterwards, until the end of the world, he sows it through his successors - the apostles, shepherds and teachers of the church. This sowing or preaching of the word of God was not and will not be limited to any one place on earth; no, the whole world, the whole earth, all nations are a field for such sowing. Everyone should hear God's word preached.
The field is the world. – The good seed are the sons of the kingdom:
those. people of the kingdom of Christ or the church of Christ on earth,
Tares- sons of the evil one:
bad members of the Church of Christ on earth, whose moral or better immoral disposition of the soul comes from the devil. John Chrysostom means by the sons of the evil one all temptations and lawlessness.
The enemy who sowed them is the devil:
He calls the devil the enemy of people because he harms people, and his desire to harm is directed against us, although it is not out of enmity against us, but out of enmity against God” (John Chrysostom).
Harvests - end of the century:
when God comes to the Last Judgment.
Residents – Angels:
“When he sows, he sows himself; when he punishes, he punishes through others, namely through the Angels. In other places it is said that the harvest has already arrived (John; Luke);
« ...why did he say there that the harvest has already come, but here he says that the harvest will still happen? Because the word harvest takes on different signs. And why, having said in another place: one sows, and another reaps (John), here Christ says that he who sows is himself? Because there, speaking before the Jews and Samaritans, he contrasts the apostles not with himself, but with the prophets. For He himself sowed and through the prophets. So, where he calls the same thing both harvest and sowing, he takes the words in different meanings. When he understands the obedience and obedience of the listeners, then, as one who has finished his work, he calls this harvest. When he still expects only fruit from listening, then he calls it sowing, and the end – harvest.”(John Chrysostom).
He will send his angels, etc.:
a visual image of the separation of the tares of wheat, the righteous from sinners, temptations and those who practice iniquity from the truth and those who do the law. “He calls the same ones temptations and those who practice iniquity.”
Into the fiery furnace:
The image of hell, where devils and sinners will be tormented, seems to have been borrowed from the terrible custom of the Babylonians - throwing those guilty of state crimes into a hot furnace (Dan.).
Then:
after the righteous are separated from the sinners, and the latter are sent to the place of torment, i.e. after the last World Court.
The righteous will shine like the sun:
“That doesn’t mean they will glow just like the sun. But since we do not know another luminary that would be more brilliant than the sun, the Lord uses images known to us” (John Chrysostom, Theophylact of Bulgaria).
3. Parable of the Mustard Seed
He proposed another parable to them, saying: The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, which, although smaller than all the seeds, when it grows, is larger than all the grains and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and take refuge. in its branches.
The Russian people have such an expression - “speak in riddles,” that is, explain themselves in an allegorical form, speak not directly, but in a figurative sense. Once upon a time in the East, expressing wise thoughts in allegories was commonplace. Such stories were called parables.
The meaning of the parable
The main purpose of the parable was considered to be to reveal religious or everyday meaning in a short story. The heroes of the parables had a certain social status (rich man, king, traveler, winegrower, father and son) and did not have deep descriptions of appearance or character.
Biblical parables explained how to behave in order to live well before people and God. They had a stronger impact on consciousness than just accusatory or edifying words, because they showed the rules of behavior using the example of specific people. When a person saw the pattern of actions in the parables, he thought that he was leading a wrong life, or he remembered the lesson embedded in the little story and tried to avoid bitterness in his life.
Proverbs of King Solomon
Solomon was the son of King David, after whose death he took the throne of Israel. He ruled the country for 40 years, did not fight with his neighbors, investing all his strength and resources in the development of the country. People came to the king for advice if they could not resolve the dispute themselves, and one day the Queen of Sheba came to the king from distant lands. She had heard a lot about the wisdom of the ruler and was personally convinced of the correctness of people’s opinions.
Solomon wrote a book of parables that became part of the Bible. The book of Ecclesiastes is also credited with the authorship of Solomon, which shows reflections on the stupidity of daily vanity, the true meaning of life and talks about human death.
Most parables teach that:
- sons must be obedient to parents and God;
- the advantages of wise people over foolish ones are considered;
- if you give your word, you must keep your promise;
- an example of a true and faithful wife is shown;
- going to harlots (prostitutes) will corrupt and destroy a person;
- An algorithm for the behavior of a wise person is given.
The Book of Proverbs consists of 31 chapters. Its chapters briefly examine many life situations, and then Solomon tells how to behave in order to do well and be successful.
Parables of Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ not only walked from city to city, healed the sick and performed miracles, he taught people a righteous and correct life, including with the help of parables.
He told parables in such a way that they would be understood only by his disciples or those who want to follow him, and not by the Pharisees and scribes who were looking for an opportunity to kill the Savior.
The biblical parables of Jesus Christ are filled with vivid images. One should not look for hidden and encrypted messages in the Savior’s parables. The lessons of the biblical parables are to briefly illustrate the wisdom we should follow through examples from social life.
Parable of the Prodigal Son
The father had two sons. The youngest child asked his father to share the inheritance with his older brother and, having received the money, went to live in another city. There he spent his entire fortune, and when hunger came, he decided that it was better for him to return home. His father received him with open arms and threw a feast in honor of his son's return. The eldest son did not want to come to the feast, he expressed dissatisfaction to his father that he was working without straightening his back, and his father never even gave him a little goat so that he could have fun. In the end, the head of the family smooths out the conflict and reconciles his sons.
Here is a brief plot of probably the most famous biblical parable about the prodigal son. What does this parable mean? The father is God, and his sons are us. We leave, run away from God and think that we will live happier in a foreign land than at home. But we still return to our home: beaten, exhausted, tired. Father will always greet us with joy, give us food and a roof over our heads.
The image of the elder brother is the ostentatious faith of legalists - people who believe that God is obliged to save them for their services to him. They don't want to share the inheritance with others because they only think about themselves.
Parable of the Good Samaritan
One of the largest and most significant parables of Jesus Christ is the parable of the Good Samaritan. Let's look at the brief plot of the biblical parable. One man was returning home, but robbers attacked him on the road, beat him and took away everything he had with him. Both the priest and the Levite passed by, but did not help the wounded traveler. Only a Samaritan passing by tied up the wounds of the victim, took him to the hotel and gave instructions that the owner of the hotel would take care of this man.
When Christ was asked who our neighbor would be, he gave this parable as an example. As a result, the man’s neighbors were not his fellow countrymen, but a Samaritan who was hostile to the Jews. The one who shows us mercy, kindness and generosity is our neighbor.
The Samaritans did not like the Jews, but in this parable the man who should have been the enemy of the Jew took care of him.
Another interpretation of the parable may say that the Samaritan is the Lord himself, who binds up our spiritual wounds and leaves us in an inn for the time being. But the time will come when he will come for us.
Parable of the Sower and its interpretation
On the shore of the lake, Jesus Christ told an instructive parable that had more spiritual overtones. It was the parable of the sower. The sower throws seeds in different places: near the road, on a rocky place, next to thorns and on good soil. Along the road, birds pecked the seeds, on a rocky field, a plant was burned by the rays of the sun, a seed that grew with thorns was destroyed by a weed. And only in good soil did the seeds bear fruit.
Let's look at this biblical parable with interpretation in more detail. The sower personifies the Lord or teacher who speaks the word of God (the image of the seed). Birds carry away the seed: when a person hears the word of God, but the devil leads him away from faith, tempting him with various thoughts and offering sinful alternatives. Seeds that fell into rocky soil mean fickle people: now they believe in God, but when they are persecuted for their faith or trouble arises, they no longer believe in him. Seeds in the weed (thorns) - people hear God's word, but forget it because they love this world and spend their time in vanity. The grains that grew in good soil are an image of people who heard the word, who remember it, do good deeds and have peace in their souls.
The parable talks about four types of people who hear the Gospel, but receive the Word of God in different ways. Success will be achieved by the person who, like good soil, accepts the seeds that God wants to grow in us and grow a tree that bears fruit.
Short Bible Parables
The Gospel tells many parables. Some of them are long, and some are very short, but no less instructive. Short biblical parables include the following stories:
- barren fig tree;
- parable of the vinedressers;
- wise and foolish virgins;
- king and debtor;
- unfaithful steward;
- buried talent;
- the rich man and Lazarus.
These short parables teach us that we need to be honest, to correctly carry out the work entrusted to us, not to bury our abilities in the ground, but to serve God and people with them.
Let's look at some of the shortest parables of Jesus Christ.
Bogach and Lazar
The rich man dies and goes to hell, and the beggar Lazarus is taken to heaven. The rich man begs to be taken to heaven, but he is refused, and it’s not because of his wealth. The rich man mismanaged his money, using it for entertainment; he did not even think of helping Lazarus, who had been starving all his life.
Parable of the Vinedressers
This is the story of how the owner of the vineyard gave it to the winegrowers, and they first killed the owner’s servants, and then his son, in the hope that they would become the rulers of the winegrower. But the owner treated them fairly. The owner's son clearly shows the features of Jesus Christ, whom the Father sent into this world, and the Pharisees and scribes (vinedressers) killed him.
Bible parables for children
There are no parables in the Bible specifically intended for children. It all depends on the age of the child and how a particular parable is presented to him.
Among the parables for children and teenagers is the story of the lost sheep. This little parable says that a sheep ran away from the flock, and when the shepherd found it, he hugged it and lovingly took it back. The shepherd in the parable is presented as kind and loving, for whom every sheep is important. So the Lord Jesus Christ came to earth to save us from sin, and every person is important to him, even the one who runs away and then, like the prodigal son, returns home.
Any parable can be told to a child in simple and clear language so that he understands and realizes the truth that biblical parables can convey.
Among the sea of countless pearls of human wisdom, Orthodox parables occupy a special place: short allegorical stories allow us to understand the essence of all things and become more perfect in mercy, generosity, patience and love for life and our neighbors. This book includes selected, brightest, wisest, most useful stories told by Jesus Christ himself and great spiritual teachers.
Parables of Christ
“The sower went out to sow”
And a great multitude gathered unto Him, so that He entered into a boat, and sat down; and all the people stood on the shore. And he taught them many parables, saying:
– Behold, a sower went out to sow; and as he sowed, some fell by the road, and birds came and devoured them; some fell on rocky places where there was little soil, and soon sprang up because the soil was shallow. When the sun rose, it withered and, as if it had no root, withered; some fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew and choked it; some fell on good soil and bore fruit: one a hundredfold, and another sixty, and another thirty. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!
And the disciples came and said to Him:
– Why do you speak to them in parables?
He answered them:
– For the fact that it has been given to you to know the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven, but it has not been given to them, for whoever has, to him will be given and will have an increase, and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him; Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, and they do not understand; and the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled over them, which says: “If you hear with your ears, you will not understand, and you will look with your eyes, but you will not see, for the hearts of this people have become hardened and their ears are hard to hear, and they have closed their eyes, lest they see with their eyes and hear.” ears, and they will not understand in their hearts, and let them not be converted, so that I may heal them.” Blessed are your eyes that they see, and your ears that they hear, for verily I say to you, that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear.
Listen to the meaning of the parable of the sower: to everyone who hears the word about the Kingdom and does not understand, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in his heart - this is what is sown along the way. And what is sown on rocky places means one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; but it has no root in itself and is fickle: when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, it is immediately tempted. And what was sown among thorns means one who hears the word, but the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. What is sown on good soil means one who hears the word and understands it, and who bears fruit, so that some bear fruit a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.
(Gospel of Matthew, chapter 13, verses 2–23)
This parable of Christ is the first one told by the Savior. It is also transmitted by the evangelists Mark (Mark 4:1-10) and Luke (Luke 8:4-15). This is one of the rare parables of the Gospel that the Lord Himself interprets, and it speaks about itself - about the word of God. In this parable, the “Sower” is Jesus Christ; “seed” is the word of God, and “earth”, “soil” is the human heart. Christ sowed the word of God everywhere - in villages, cities, deserts, and at sea. He chose the apostles so that they too would sow the word of God. The apostles appointed successors for themselves - bishops and presbyters, who continued and continue to this day missionary work to spread and sow the word of God. The Church continues the work of Christ on earth - to sow the word of God into our hearts.
Here the Savior also gives the answer to why He chose the form of a parable for His teachings. Both the parables themselves and their impact on people are multi-layered and multi-valued. Saint John Chrysostom, in a conversation on the 44th Psalm, says: “... Since speech that is easy for understanding leads many to inattention, he speaks in a parable... A parable distinguishes a worthy listener from an unworthy one; the worthy one tries to find out the meaning of what was said, and the unworthy one ignores it... Covert speech in general can strongly encourage research.”
All the parables of Orthodoxy grow out of the parables of the Savior, and this book begins with them. The key to reading the multiple meanings of Christ’s parables, where the Savior Himself did not give it to us, is given to us by the great minds and hearts of the Church. From the many interpretations, explanations, and sermons devoted to each of Christ’s parables (interpretations of individual parables themselves could form entire libraries), we have chosen the most concise, intelligible and significant. After all, the parables of Christ themselves must be read in the Gospel itself, which is available for everyone to read; but they are the center of this book, and in placing them here we must add to them the conciliar mind of the Church, her love, her voice, her explanations.
“The first group includes parables told by the Savior shortly after the Sermon on the Mount, during the period between the second and third Easter of His public ministry. These initial parables speak about the conditions for the spread and strengthening of the Kingdom of God or the Church among people. These include the parables of the sower, the tares, the invisibly growing seed, the mustard seed, the pearl of great price and others….
The second group of parables was told by the Lord towards the end of the third year of His public ministry. In these parables, the Lord spoke about God’s endless mercy towards repentant people and outlined various moral rules. These include parables about the lost sheep, about the prodigal son, about the unmerciful debtor, about the good Samaritan, about the foolish rich man, about the wise builder, about the unjust judge and others.....
In His last parables (of the third period), told shortly before the sufferings on the cross, the Lord speaks about the Grace of God and about man’s responsibility before God, and also predicts about the punishment that will befall unbelieving Jews, about His second coming, about the Last Judgment, about the reward of the righteous and about eternal life. This last group includes the parables of the barren fig tree, the wicked husbandmen, those invited to the supper, the talents, the ten virgins, the workers who received equal pay, and others.”
(Bishop Alexander (Mileant). Hidden Wisdom: Modern Orthodox Commentary on the Books of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. P. 258)
A list of sources for each section is given at the end of the book. The parables of Christ in this section are given exactly according to the edition of the Bible indicated in the list (Publishing Council of the Russian Orthodox Church); for ease of perception, a division into paragraphs has been added and direct speech is conveyed in accordance with modern punctuation standards.
"The Kingdom of Heaven is like..."
(Parables about the Kingdom of God)
Bishop Alexander (Mileant), p. 259–260:
In the first group of parables, the Lord Jesus Christ gives the Divine Teaching about the spread of the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven among people. By these names one should understand the Church of Christ on earth, which at first consisted of the twelve Apostles and the closest disciples of Christ, and after the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Apostles on the day of Pentecost, it began to quickly spread throughout different countries in which the Apostles preached. In its spiritual essence, the Church of Christ is not limited by any territory, nationality, culture, language or other external signs, for the grace of God penetrates and abides in the souls of people, illuminating their mind and conscience, directing their will to good. People who have become members of the Church of Christ are called “sons of the Kingdom” in the parables, in contrast to unbelievers and unrepentant sinners, who are called “sons of the evil one.” The conditions for the spread and strengthening of the Kingdom of God in people are told in the parables of the sower, of the tares, of the invisibly growing seed, of the mustard seed, of the leaven and of the treasure hidden in the field.
About the tares
This parable directly follows in the Gospel the parable of the Sower.
He told them another parable, saying:
– The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; while the people were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went away; When the greenery sprang up and the fruit appeared, then the tares also appeared. Having arrived, the servants of the householder said to him: “Master! did you not sow good seed in your field? where does the tares come from?” He told them: “The enemy man did this.” And the slaves said to him: “Do you want us to go and choose them?” But he said: “No - so that when you choose the tares, you do not pull up the wheat along with them, leave both to grow together until the harvest; and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather first the tares and bind them in sheaves to burn them, and put the wheat into my barn.”
…Then Jesus dismissed the crowd and entered the house. And coming to Him, His disciples said:
– Explain to us the parable of the tares in the field.
He answered them:
– He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world; the good seed are the sons of the Kingdom, and the tares are the sons of the evil one; the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Therefore, just as they gather up the tares and burn them with fire, so it will be at the end of this age: the Son of Man will send His angels, and they will gather from His kingdom all who offend and those who practice iniquity, and will throw them into the fiery furnace; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth; then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!
(Matthew 13, 24–30, 36–43)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Tuesday of the 6th week after Pentecost:
Good seed was sown, but the enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat. Tares are heresies and schisms in the Church, and in each of us there are evil thoughts, feelings, desires, passions. A person accepts the good seed of the word of God, decides to live holy and begins to live that way. When a person falls asleep like this, that is, weakens his attention to himself, then the enemy of salvation comes and puts evil plans into him, which, not being rejected at first, ripen into desires and dispositions and start their own circle of affairs and enterprises, mixed with deeds, feelings and thoughts kind. And they both remain together until the harvest. This harvest is repentance. The Lord sends angels - a feeling of contrition and fear of God, and they, appearing like a sickle, burn up all the tares and burn them in the fire of painful self-condemnation. Clean wheat remains in the granary of the heart, to the joy of man, the angels, and the most good God, worshiped in the Trinity.
About the invisible growing seed
And said:
– The Kingdom of God is like if a person throws a seed into the ground, and sleeps and rises night and day; and how the seed sprouts and grows, he does not know, for the earth itself produces first greenery, then an ear, then a full grain in the ear. When the fruit is ripe, he immediately sends in the sickle, because the harvest has come.
(Mk. 4, 26–29)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Tuesday of the 14th week after Pentecost:
The parable of the gradual growth from the seed of wheat depicts in relation to each person the gradual growth of what is hidden in the heart of a person, seeded and preserved by the grace of God, and in relation to humanity - the gradual increase in the body of the Church or society saved in the Lord Jesus Christ, according to the order established by Him. This parable resolves the question: why is Christianity not all-embracing to this day? Just as a person, having thrown a seed into the ground, sleeps and gets up, but the seed vegetates and grows by itself without his knowledge, so the Lord, having laid the seed of Divine life on the earth, gave it the freedom to grow, subordinating it to the natural course of events and without forcing them the latter; only the seed watches, assists it in particular cases and gives general direction. The reason for this is human freedom. The Lord seeks for man to submit himself to Him, and waits for his freedom to decline; the matter continues. If everything depended only on the will of God, everyone would have been Christians long ago. Another thought: the body of the Church being created is being built in heaven; Only materials come from the earth, which are also formed by heavenly figures. The word from heaven passes through the earth and attracts those who want it. Those who listened and followed, like raw material, enter the laboratory of God, the Church, and here they are remade according to the models given from heaven. Those who have been converted, upon leaving this life, move to heaven and there they enter the building of God, each one fit for purpose. This goes on continuously, and therefore the work of God is not worthwhile. The universal triumph of Christianity is not required for this. The building of God is built invisibly.
About the mustard seed
He proposed another parable to them, saying:
– The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field, which, although smaller than all the seeds, when it grows, it is larger than all the grains and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and take refuge in its branches.
(Matt. 13, 31–32; also: Mark 4, 30–32; Luke 13, 18–19)
About sourdough
He told them another parable:
– The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour until it was all leavened.
(Matt. 13:33; also: Luke 13:20–21)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Wednesday of the 6th week after Pentecost:
The Kingdom is like mustard seed and leaven. A small mustard seed grows into a large bush; the leaven penetrates the entire kneaded dough and makes it leavened. Here, on the one hand, is the image of the Church, which at first only consisted of the Apostles and a few other persons, then grew and became numerous, penetrating all of humanity; on the other hand, an image of spiritual life revealed in every person. Its first seed is the intention and determination to be saved through pleasing God through faith in the Lord the Savior. This determination, no matter how strong, is like a small point. At first it embraces only consciousness and self-activity; From this, all the activities of spiritual life then develop. In itself, it multiplies in movements and strength, and matures, and in relation to the soul it begins to penetrate it in all its powers - in the mind, will, feelings and fulfills them with itself, makes them fermented in its spirit, penetrates the entire composition of human nature and body, soul, and spirit in which it is born is also said in the following very short parable -
About the treasure hidden in the field
Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which, having found, a man hid, and out of joy over it he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field.
(Matt. 13:44)
Bishop Alexander (Mileant), p. 268:
The grace of God is a true treasure, in comparison with which all earthly blessings seem insignificant (or rubbish, in the words of the Apostle Paul). However, just as it is impossible for a person to take possession of a treasure until he sells his property in order to buy the field where it is hidden, so it is impossible to acquire the grace of God until a person decides to sacrifice his earthly goods. For the sake of the grace given in the Church, a person needs to sacrifice everything: his preconceived opinions, free time and peace of mind, successes and pleasures in life. According to the parable, the one who found the treasure “hid it” so that others would not steal it. In the same way, a member of the Church who has received the grace of God should carefully preserve it in his soul, not boasting about this gift, so as not to lose it through pride.
About the pearl
Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant looking for good pearls, who, having found one pearl of great price, went and sold everything he had and bought it.
(Matt. 13:45)
St. Theophan the Recluse. What is spiritual life and how to tune in to it, ch. 28:
From these parables you can see exactly what is expected of us. We are expected to 1) recognize the presence of the gift of grace within ourselves; 2) we understood its preciousness for us, so great that it is more precious than life, so that without it life is not life; 3) they desired with all their desire to assimilate this grace to themselves, and themselves to it, or, what is the same, to be imbued with it in their entire nature, to be enlightened and sanctified; 4) they decided to achieve this by deed and then 5) they brought this determination into fulfillment, abandoning everything, or detaching their heart from everything and betraying it all to the all-effects of God’s grace. When these five acts are completed in us, then the beginning of our internal rebirth begins, after which, if we relentlessly continue to act in the same spirit, internal rebirth and insight will increase - quickly or slowly, judging by our work, and most importantly, by self-forgetfulness and selflessness.
The Kingdom of Heaven is also like a net thrown into the sea and capturing fish of all kinds, which, when it was full, they pulled ashore and sat down, collecting the good in vessels, and throwing out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age: the angels will come out and separate the wicked from among the righteous, and throw them into the fiery furnace: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
(Matthew 13:47–50)
And Jesus asked them: Have you understood all this? They say to Him: Yes, Lord! He said to them: Therefore, every scribe who has been taught the kingdom of heaven is like a master who brings out of his treasury new and old.
(Matthew 13:51–52)
“Rejoice with me: I have found my lost sheep.”
(Parables about God's mercy and repentance)
Bishop Alexander (Mileant), p. 270:
After a relatively long break and several months before His suffering on the cross, the Lord Jesus Christ told us His new parables. These parables conditionally form the second group. In these parables, the Lord revealed to people the endless mercy of God, aimed at saving sinful people, and also gave a number of visual teachings about how, following God, we should love each other.
About the Lost Sheep
All the publicans and sinners approached Him to listen to Him. The Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying: He receives sinners and eats with them. But He told them the following parable:
– Which of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the lost one until he finds it? And having found it, he will take it on his shoulders with joy and, having come home, will call his friends and neighbors and say to them: “Rejoice with me: I have found my lost sheep.” I tell you that there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who do not need to repent.
(Luke 15:1–7; also: Matt. 18:11–14)
About the lost drachma
Or what woman, having ten drachmas, if she loses one drachma, does not light a candle and sweep the room and search carefully until she finds it, and when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors and says: “Rejoice with me: I have found the lost drachma.”
So, I tell you, there is joy among the Angels of God over one sinner who repents.
(Luke 15:8–10)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Wednesday of the 26th week after Pentecost:
Parable of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin
How great is the Lord’s mercy towards us sinners! Leaves all the good ones and turns to the faulty ones to fix them; He looks for them and, when he finds them, He Himself rejoices and calls all heaven to rejoice with Him. How does it look? Doesn't He know where we are, having departed from Him? He knows and sees everything, but if the point was only to take it and transfer it to his own, immediately all the sinners would appear again in their rank. But one must first be disposed to repentance so that conversion and return to the Lord can be free, and this cannot be done by command or any external order. The Lord's search for the sinner consists in bringing him to repentance. He arranges everything around him so that the sinner comes to his senses and, seeing the abyss into which he is striving, returns back. All circumstances of life are directed here, all meetings with moments of sorrow and joy, even words and glances. And the internal influences of God through conscience and other right feelings lying in the heart never cease. How much is being done to convert sinners to the path of virtue, but sinners still remain sinners!.. The enemy brings darkness, and they think that everything will pass; and if anxiety arises, they say: “I’ll quit tomorrow,” and remain in the same position. So day after day passes; indifference to one's salvation grows and grows. A little more, and it will turn into bitterness in sin. Will conversion come then - who knows?
About the Prodigal Son
Also said:
– A certain man had two sons; and the youngest of them said to his father: “Father! give me the next portion of the estate.” And the father divided the estate for them.
After a few days, the youngest son, having collected everything, went to a far side and there squandered his property, living dissolutely. When he had lived through everything, a great famine arose in that country, and he began to be in need; and he went and accosted one of the inhabitants of that country, and he sent him to his fields to graze pigs; and he was glad to fill his belly with the horns that the pigs ate, but no one gave it to him.
Having come to his senses, he said: “How many of my father’s hired servants have an abundance of bread, but I am dying of hunger; I will get up, go to my father and say to him: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you and am no longer worthy to be called your son; accept me as one of your hired servants." He got up and went to his father.
And while he was still far away, his father saw him and had compassion; and, running, fell on his neck and kissed him. The son said to him: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you and am no longer worthy to be called your son.” And the father said to his servants: “Bring the best robe and dress him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; and bring the fatted calf, and kill it; Let's eat and have fun! for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” And they started having fun.
His eldest son was in the field; and returning, when he approached the house, he heard singing and rejoicing; and, calling one of the servants, asked: “What is this?” He said to him: “Your brother came, and your father killed the fatted calf, because he received it healthy.”
He became angry and did not want to enter. His father came out and called him. But he said in response to his father: “Behold, I have served you for so many years and have never violated your orders, but you never gave me even a kid so that I could have fun with my friends; and when this son of yours, who squandered his wealth with harlots, came, you killed the fatted calf for him.”
He said to him: “My son! You are always with me, and all that is mine is yours, and it was necessary to rejoice and be glad that this brother of yours was dead and came to life, was lost and was found.”
(Luke 15:11–32)
Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov). Lesson on the Sunday of the Prodigal Son. About repentance. – Creations, vol. IV, p. 35–37:
The youngest son, according to the explanation of the Holy Fathers, can be the image of the entire fallen human race and of every human sinner. The next part of the estate for the youngest son is the gifts of God, with which every person, especially a Christian, is filled. The most excellent of God's gifts are the mind and heart, and especially the grace of the Holy Spirit, given to every Christian. The father’s demand for the next part of the estate to be used arbitrarily is a person’s desire to overthrow his obedience to God and follow his own thoughts and desires. The father’s consent to the issuance of the estate depicts the autocracy with which God honored man in the use of God’s gifts. A distant country is a sinful life that removes and alienates us from God. Wasting property is depleting the strength of the mind, heart and body, especially insulting and driving away the Holy Spirit through sinful acts. The poverty of the youngest son: this is the emptiness of the soul resulting from a sinful life. The permanent residents of a distant country are the rulers of the darkness of this age, fallen spirits, constant in their fall, in alienation from God; the sinner submits to their influence. A herd of unclean animals are sinful thoughts and feelings that wander in the soul of a sinner, grazing in its pastures; they are an inevitable consequence of sinful activity. It would be in vain for a person to think of drowning out these thoughts and sensations by fulfilling them: they are the most impracticable! And the fulfillment of passionate thoughts and dreams possible for a person does not destroy them: it excites them with redoubled force. Man was created for Heaven: true good alone can serve as satisfactory, life-giving food for him. Evil, attracting and seducing the taste of the heart, damaged by the fall, can only upset human properties.
The emptiness of the soul that a sinful life produces is terrible! The torment from passionate sinful thoughts and sensations is unbearable, when they boil like worms in the soul, when they torment the soul that has submitted to them, the soul that is raped by them! Often a sinner, tormented by fierce thoughts, dreams and unfulfilled wishes, comes to despair; He often encroaches on his very life, both temporary and eternal. Blessed is the sinner who, in this difficult time, comes to his senses and remembers the unlimited love of the Heavenly Father, remembers the immeasurable spiritual wealth that abounds in the house of the Heavenly Father - the Holy Church. Blessed is the sinner who, horrified by his sinfulness, wants to get rid of the burden that oppresses him through repentance.
From the parable of the Gospel we learn that on the part of a person, for successful and fruitful repentance, the following are necessary: vision of one’s sin, consciousness of it, repentance for it, confession of it. Turning to God with such a heartfelt pledge, I am still far away from him, God sees: he sees and is already hastening to meet him, embracing him, kissing him with His grace. As soon as the penitent has made a confession of sin, the merciful Lord commands the slaves - the altar servers and the holy Angels - to clothe him in the bright robe of purity, to put on his hand a ring - evidence of renewed unity with the Church earthly and heavenly, to put boots on his feet, so that his activity will be protected from spiritual thorns by strong regulations - such is the meaning of boots - by the commandments of Christ. To complete the acts of love, a meal of love is provided for the returning son, for which a well-fed calf is slain. This meal signifies a church meal at which spiritual incorruptible food and drink is offered to a sinner reconciled with God: Christ, long promised to humanity, prepared by the ineffable mercy of God for fallen humanity from the very minutes of its fall.
About the Publican and the Pharisee
He also spoke to some who were confident in themselves that they were righteous, and humiliated others, the following parable:
– Two men entered the temple to pray: one was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing, prayed to himself like this: “God! I thank You that I am not like other people, robbers, offenders, adulterers, or like this tax collector: I fast twice a week, I give a tenth of everything I acquire.”
The publican, standing in the distance, did not even dare to raise his eyes to heaven; but, hitting himself on the chest, he said: “God! be merciful to me, a sinner! I tell you that this one went to his house justified more than the other: for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.
(Luke 18:9–14)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Week of the Publican and the Pharisee (33rd):
Yesterday the Gospel taught us persistence in prayer, and now it teaches us humility or a sense of powerlessness to be heard. Do not arrogate to yourself the right to be heard, but begin to pray, as if you are unworthy of any attention, and give yourself the boldness to open your lips and offer prayer to God, according to the Lord’s boundless condescension towards us poor people. And don’t let the thought occur to you: I did this and that; give me something. Whatever you do, consider it due; you had to do all that. If you hadn’t done it, you would have been punished, but what you did, there’s nothing to reward, you didn’t show anything special. There the Pharisee listed his rights to be heard and left the church with nothing. The bad thing is not that he did as he said; That’s what he should have done, but the bad thing is that he presented it as something special, when having done it he shouldn’t have even thought about it. – Deliver us, Lord, from this Pharisee sin! Rarely does anyone say this in words, but in the feeling of the heart it is rare that no one is not like this. For why do they pray poorly? Because they feel that they are already in order before God.
Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov). Pharisees. Part I. – Creations, vol. I, p. 382–383:
Anyone infected with the disease of Pharisaism is deprived of spiritual success. The soil of his heart’s field is hard and does not bear harvest: for spiritual fruitfulness, a heart is necessary, cultivated by repentance, softened, moistened with tenderness and tears. Deprivation of prosperity is already significant damage! But the harm that comes from Pharisaism is not limited to the sterility of the soul: the deadly infection of Pharisaism is for the most part associated with the most disastrous consequences. Pharisaism not only makes a person’s good deeds fruitless, but directs them to evil in his soul, to his condemnation before God.
The Lord depicted this in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector who prayed together in the temple of God. The Pharisee, looking at himself, did not find reasons for repentance, for a feeling of heartfelt contrition; on the contrary, he found reasons to be pleased with himself, to admire himself. He saw himself as fasting, giving alms; but he did not see the vices that he saw, or thought to see in others, and by which he was tempted. I say I thought to see: because temptation has big eyes; he also sees sins in his neighbor that are not in him at all, which his imagination, led by wickedness, invented for his neighbor. The Pharisee, in his self-delusion, brings praise to God for his state of mind. He hides his exaltation, and it is hidden from him, under the guise of thanksgiving to God. With a superficial look at the Law, it seemed to him that he was a fulfiller of the Law, pleasing to God. He forgot that the commandment of the Lord, in the words of the Psalmist, is extremely broad, that heaven itself is unclean before God, that God does not take pleasure in sacrifices, not even burnt offerings, when they are not accompanied and promoted by contrition and humility of spirit, that the Law of God is necessary planted in the very heart to achieve true, blissful, spiritual righteousness. The manifestation of this righteousness begins in a person with a feeling of poverty of spirit. The vain Pharisee thinks of thanking and glorifying God... he is counting obvious sins that can be visible to everyone; but he doesn’t say a word about spiritual passions, about pride, deceit, hatred, envy, hypocrisy. And they are what constitute a Pharisee! They darken and deaden the soul, making it incapable of repentance! They destroy love for one's neighbor and give birth to temptation filled with coldness, pride and hatred! The vain Pharisee imagines thanking God for his good deeds; but God turns away from him; God pronounces a terrible sentence against him: Everyone who exalts himself will humble himself.
When Pharisaism strengthens and matures and takes possession of the soul, its fruits are terrible. There is no lawlessness before which it would shudder, or to which it would decide. The Pharisees dared to blaspheme the Holy Spirit. The Pharisees dared to call the Son of God possessed. The Pharisees allowed themselves to assert that God incarnate, the Savior who came to earth, is dangerous for public well-being; for the civil life of the Jews. And why all these intertwined fictions? In order, under the cover of outward justice, under the guise of protecting the nationality, laws, religion, to satiate the insatiable malice with blood, to sacrifice blood to envy and vanity, in order to commit Deicide. Pharisaism is a terrible poison; Pharisaism is a terrible mental illness.
Let us try to draw an image of a Pharisee, borrowing painting from the Gospel, so that everyone, peering at this terrible, monstrous image, can be carefully guarded, according to the will of the Lord, from the leaven of the Pharisees: from the way of thinking, from the rules, from the mood of the Pharisees.
About the unmerciful debtor
Then Peter came to Him and said:
- God! How many times should I forgive my brother who sins against me? up to seven times?
Jesus tells him:
“I don’t tell you: up to seven, but up to seventy times seven.”
Therefore, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants; when he began to reckon, someone was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents; and since he did not have anything to pay with, his sovereign ordered him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and everything that he had, and to pay; then that slave fell, and, bowing to him, said: “Sovereign! Be patient with me, and I’ll pay you everything!”
The Emperor, having mercy on that slave, released him and forgave him the debt.
That servant, going out, found one of his companions, who owed him a hundred denarii, and, grabbing him, strangled him, saying: “Give me what you owe!” Then his comrade fell at his feet, begged him and said: “Have patience with me, and I will give you everything!” But he didn’t want to, but went and put him in prison until he paid off the debt.
His comrades, seeing what had happened, were very upset and, when they came, they told their sovereign everything that had happened. Then his sovereign calls him and says:
– Evil slave! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me; Shouldn't you also have had mercy on your companion, just as I had mercy on you?
And, angry, his sovereign handed him over to the torturers until he paid him all the debt.
So will My Heavenly Father do to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from his heart for his sins.
(Matthew 18:21–35)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. 11th Sunday after Pentecost:
The Lord concluded the parable of the two debtors with these words: “So will My Heavenly Father do to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother his sins from his heart.” It seems that such a little is required: forgive, and you will be forgiven; and when forgiven, then accepted into mercy; and when he was accepted into mercy, he became a participant in all the treasures of mercy. Therefore, here is salvation, and paradise, and eternal bliss. And such a great gain for such a small thing that we will forgive!.. Yes, a small thing, but for our pride there is nothing harder than to forgive. Some kind of unintentional trouble, secretly inflicted on us so that no one would see, we will probably still forgive; but a little more sensitively, and in front of people, at least don’t ask: there is no forgiveness. There are circumstances, whether you like it or not, but you cannot express displeasure, and you remain silent: but the tongue is silent, and the heart speaks and makes evil plans. Increase the unpleasantness by one more line, and there is no holding back: neither shame, nor fear, nor losses, nothing will hold back. Boiling selfishness makes a person seem like a madman, and those who succumb to it begin to say nonsense. It is not just any people who are most susceptible to such misfortune, but the more civilized one is, the more sensitive to insults, the less forgiving. On the outside, relationships sometimes still remain smooth, but on the inside there is a decisive discord. Meanwhile, the Lord demands that we forgive with all our hearts.
About the Merciful Samaritan
And so, one lawyer stood up and, tempting Him, said:
- Teacher! What must I do to inherit eternal life?
He told him:
– What is written in the law? how do you read?
He said in response:
– Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.
Jesus said to him:
– You answered correctly; do this and you will live.
But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus:
– Who is my neighbor?
To this Jesus said:
– A certain man was walking from Jerusalem to Jericho and was caught by robbers, who took off his clothes, wounded him and left, leaving him barely alive. By chance, a priest was walking along that road and, seeing him, passed by. Likewise, the Levite, being at that place, came up, looked and passed by. A Samaritan, passing by, found him and, seeing him, took pity and, coming up, bandaged his wounds, pouring oil and wine; and, setting him on his donkey, brought him to the inn and took care of him; and the next day, as he was leaving, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper and said to him: “Take care of him; and if you spend anything more, when I return, I will give it back to you.” Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the one who fell among the robbers?
He said:
– He showed him mercy.
Then Jesus said to him:
- Go and do the same.
(Luke 10:25–37)
Saint Nicholas of Serbia. Conversations. pp. 362–381:
...The true measure of kinship, truly connecting and bringing together people and nations, is not so much blood as mercy. The misfortune of one person and the mercy of another person make them closer and dearer than blood makes siblings. For all blood ties are temporary and have some significance only in this transitory life, serving as an image of strong and eternal ties of spiritual kinship. And spiritual twins, born at the meeting of misfortune and mercy, remain brothers in eternity. For brothers who are related by blood, God is only the Creator; for spiritual brothers born of mercy, God is the Father.
Our Lord Jesus Christ offers this new measure of kinship and closeness between people to humanity in the Gospel parable of the Merciful Samaritan - he offers it, and does not impose it, because salvation is not imposed, but is graciously offered by God and voluntarily accepted by man. Blessed are those who voluntarily accept this new measure, for they will gain many brothers and relatives in the immortal Kingdom of Christ!
...Kinship by name, race, nationality, language is useless where mercy is needed, and mercy alone. Charity is the new cornerstone of the kinship established by Christ between people. The lawyer did not see this; but what his mind understood from this particular incident, he was forced to admit. Go ahead and do the same, the Lord tells him. That is: if you want to inherit eternal life, then this is how you must read God’s commandment about love - and not the way you, lawyers and scribes, read. For you look at this commandment as a golden calf and deify it as an idol, but you do not know its Divine and saving meaning. You consider only a Jew as your neighbor, because you evaluate him by name, by blood and by language; You do not even consider every Jew to be your neighbor, but only the one who belongs to your party, whether legalistic, Pharisees or Sadducees; and not every one of your supporters, but those of them from whom you receive benefit, honor and praise. Thus, you interpreted God’s commandment about love as greed, and therefore it became for you a real golden calf, similar to the one that your forefathers worshiped near Horeb. So, you worship this commandment, but you do not understand and do not fulfill it. Probably the lawyer could understand this meaning of Christ’s parable, and he should have walked away ashamed. He who came to shame! And how ashamed he should be if he could understand that Christ’s parable applies to him personally! After all, he is one of the similar travelers walking from Heavenly Jerusalem to dirty earthly Jericho, a traveler from whom the demons took off the robe of God’s grace, beat him, wounded him, and left him by the road. The Law of Moses and the prophets passed by, unable to help him. And now, when the Lord tells him this parable, the merciful Samaritan has already bent over his sick soul, bandages it and pours oil and wine. He himself felt this - otherwise he would not have recognized the truth of Christ’s instructions. Whether he then allowed himself to be taken to a hotel - that is, to the Church - and finally healed, is known to the Omniscient God. The Gospel does not speak about this further.
So, in a roundabout way, Christ led this lawyer to the point that he, unconsciously in his soul, recognized Christ as his closest and dearest. The Lord led him to unconsciously admit that the words: love your neighbor as yourself, means: love the Lord Jesus Christ as yourself. It remains for us to consciously and intelligently recognize and confess this. The closest of all our neighbors is our Lord Jesus Christ, and through him all other people in trouble, whom we can help with our mercy in the name of the Lord, become our neighbors. The Lord bowed over each of us, and He left each of us two denarii so that we could heal until He comes. Until He comes into our hearts, so that we no longer see Him bending over Us, but dwelling in our hearts and living in them! And only then will we be healthy, for the source of health will be in our hearts.
About the Unrighteous Manager
He also said to His disciples:
One man was rich and had a steward, against whom it was reported to him that he was wasting his property; and calling him, he said to him:
– What am I hearing about you? Give an account of your management, for you can no longer manage.
Then the manager said to himself:
- What should I do? My master takes away the management of the house from me; I can’t dig, I’m ashamed to ask; I know what to do so that they will accept me into their homes when I am removed from managing the house.
And calling his master’s debtors, each one separately, he said to the first:
– How much do you owe my master?
He said:
– One hundred measures of oil.
And he said to him:
– Take your receipt and sit down quickly, write: fifty.
Then he said to another:
– How much do you owe?
He answered:
– One hundred measures of wheat.
And he said to him:
– Take your receipt and write: eighty.
And the lord praised the unfaithful steward for acting wisely; for the sons of this age are more perceptive in their generation than the sons of light.
And I say to you: make friends for yourself with unrighteous wealth, so that when you become poor, they will receive you into eternal abodes.
He who is faithful in a little is also faithful in much, and he who is unfaithful in a little is also unfaithful in much. So, if you have not been faithful in unrighteous wealth, who will trust you with the true?
(Luke 16:1–11)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Letters to various persons. Letter 4:
“We got,” you say, “to the parable of the unrighteous steward, and it turned out that none of us understands it.” Of all the Savior’s parables, this seems to be the most difficult. Our holy interpreters, however, managed to simplify the matter. In general, in all parables one should not seek a mysterious interpretation of every feature of the story in the story, but only pay attention to what the parable is aimed at. The same should even more so be observed when interpreting this parable. Where all attention should be directed, the Savior himself directs, saying: The lord praised the unfaithful steward for acting wisely. What is the unrighteous steward praised for? Not for the truth, but for the fact that he managed to extricate himself from the embarrassing circumstances in which he found himself. This wisdom is what the Savior wanted to instill. He seems to be saying: “See what this manager did? He did not ooh and ahh or wait for the full weight of trouble to fall on his head, but immediately, when he learned that trouble was threatening, he got down to business and managed to avert it. So manage to avert the main misfortune that threatens you.” What trouble? The one that you are sinners, and what awaits you for your sins? Condemnation and a state in which you will be more wretched than anyone else who is wretched. You are now in exactly the same position as that manager. You are about to be set aside, that is, death will come and put you in that bitter position. Do not indulge in carelessness, do not waste time, but take care to avert disaster and secure your future.
What was the wisdom of the ruler? The fact that he managed to secure his future. Manage to do the same. How? Through charity and alms. Make it easier for those in need, and it will save you. The manager made it easier for the merchants, it is assumed that they were not poor. But the power of speech is that it made it easier, although they were not among the poor, the debt still lay on their shoulders and weighed them down. This is what the Savior wanted to instill - to alleviate the situation of those who are oppressed by it - as a way to get out of the trouble that threatens everyone after death. Help those in need from your property or from everything that is in your power, and by this you will prepare yourself for the monastery into which you will be received after death.
It confuses many that charity from unrighteous property is recommended. No, this is not recommended. Notice the words of the Lord: the sons of this age are more perceptive than the sons of light in their generation. The ruler is called the son of this age, acting according to the spirit of the age. Opposed to him are the sons of light - the disciples of the Lord. The Lord says, as it were: he has become wise in his generation; be wise in your own way, that is, acting according to the laws of truth. The ruler's wisdom recommends, but his method does not recommend. That method is suitable for the sons of the age; and you will use the method that is suitable for you in your generation.
Therefore, when the Lord says after this: And I say to you: make friends for yourself with unrighteous wealth, so that when you become poor, they will receive you into eternal abodes,- it does not inspire to help those in need from property that was wrongfully acquired or misappropriated, but to do this without violating the truth, as is characteristic of the sons of light. Unrighteous wealth The Lord called the estate in general, and this is why - that it is false, deceptive; we rely on it as on a strong mountain, but today it is, and tomorrow look for it. So, the Lord inspires: ease the lot of everyone in need and burdened by misfortune from your property, and thereby you will gain friends who will take you into eternal shelter when you become poor, that is, when your life is exhausted and you move on to another life, leaving everything we have here on earth. Enter the next world with nothing: only if you have managed to send there the due portion of your property through charity, you will meet this same thing there, and that will constitute your eternal fortune. The more you send there through the hands of the poor, the more abundantly you will be satisfied and live more contentedly there.
Who these friends are, you don’t have to torture. The main thing is that you will be accepted into eternal shelters. Or, if it is desirable to define, then it will be the Lord himself, combining in Himself all the poor who have been blessed. For He said: Just as you did it to one of the least of these My brothers, you did it to Me.(Matt. 25, 35–40). For all friends - He is one, and that’s enough. He will receive you in the heavenly mansions, which He went to heaven to prepare for His faithful.
I leave all other details in the parable legend without allegorical interpretation. And you shouldn't do this. If you begin to interpret, you will only obscure the main idea and purpose of the parable.
About the Rich Man and Lazarus
A certain man was rich, dressed in purple and fine linen, and feasted brilliantly every day.
There was also a certain beggar named Lazarus, who lay at his gate covered with scabs and wanted to feed on the crumbs falling from the rich man’s table, and the dogs came and licked his scabs.
The beggar died and was carried by the Angels to Abraham's bosom.
The rich man also died and was buried. And in hell, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes, saw Abraham in the distance and Lazarus in his bosom, and cried out and said:
– Father Abraham! Have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am tormented in this flame.
But Abraham said:
– Child! remember that you have already received your good in your life, and Lazarus received your evil; now he is comforted here, and you suffer; and on top of all this, a great gulf has been established between us and you, so that those who want to cross from here to you cannot, nor can they cross from there to us.
Then he said:
“So I ask you, father, send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers; let him testify to them, so that they too do not come to this place of torment.
Abraham said to him:
– They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen to them.
He also said:
– No, Father Abraham, but if someone from the dead comes to them, they will repent.
Then Abraham said to him:
– If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, then even if someone were raised from the dead, they will not believe it.
(Luke 16:19–31)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. 22nd Sunday after Pentecost:
The parable of the rich man and Lazarus shows that those who did not live as they should will come to their senses, but will no longer have the opportunity to improve their situation. Their eyes will be opened and they will see clearly what the truth is. Remembering that there are many blind people on earth, like them, they would like someone to be sent to them from among the dead to assure them that they must live and understand things only according to the instructions of the Revelation of the Lord. But even this will be denied to them, for the sake of the fact that Revelation is self-certifying for those who want to know the truth, and for those who do not want and do not love the truth, the very resurrection of any of the dead will be unconvincing. The feelings of this influx of rich people are probably experienced by all those leaving here. And therefore, according to the conviction there, which will be the conviction of all of us, the only guide for us on the path of life is the Revelation of the Lord. But there such a conviction will be belated for many; It would be more useful here, but not everyone has it. Let us at least believe the testimony of those there, transferring ourselves to their state. Those in torment will not lie; pitying us, they want our eyes to be opened, so that we do not come to the place of their torment. You can’t talk about this subject the way we often talk about current affairs: “maybe it will pass somehow.” No, it won’t go away somehow. We must be thoroughly sure that we will not end up in the place of the rich.
Bishop Alexander (Mileant), p. 287:
In the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, the curtain of the other world is lifted and the opportunity is given to understand earthly existence from the perspective of eternity. In the light of this parable, we see that earthly goods are not so much happiness as they are a test of our ability to love and help our neighbors. If you in unrighteous wealth were not faithful, says the Lord at the conclusion of the previous parable, who will believe you to be true? That is, if we did not know how to properly manage our present illusory wealth, then we are unworthy to receive from God the true wealth that was intended for us in the future life. Therefore, let us remind ourselves that our earthly goods actually belong to God. With them He tests us.
About the reckless rich man
One of the people said to Him:
- Teacher! tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.
He said to the man:
– Who made Me to judge or divide you?
At the same time he told them:
– See that you beware of covetousness, for a person’s life does not depend on the abundance of his possessions.
And he told them a parable:
– A rich man had a good harvest in his field; and he reasoned with himself: “What should I do? I have nowhere to gather my fruits.” And he said: “This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and I will gather there all my bread and all my goods, and I will say to my soul: soul! you have a lot of good things lying around for many years: rest, eat, drink, be merry.” But God said to him: “You fool! this night your soul will be taken from you; who will get what you have prepared? This is what happens to those who store up treasures for themselves and do not become rich in God.
(Luke 12:13–21)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. 26th Sunday after Pentecost:
Having told a parable about a man who became rich, who was only going to eat, drink and be merry, and for this he was struck by death, not having lived to enjoy the expected pleasures, the Lord concluded: “This is what happens to those who accumulate treasures for themselves, and do not become rich for God.”... Those who get rich with In oblivion of God they only think about carnal pleasures. Those who wish to avoid this bitter fate should not “gather” for themselves, but grow rich only in God. And since wealth is from God, when it flows, dedicate it to God, and holy wealth will come out. Share all excesses with those in need: this will be the same as returning to God what was given by God. He who gives to the poor gives to God. Seemingly depleting wealth, such a one truly becomes rich, rich in good deeds - rich for God's sake, in ways of pleasing Him, rich in God, attracting His favor, rich in God, Who in a little places the faithful over many; he grows rich in God, and not in himself, for he does not consider himself a master, but only a steward and spender, whose whole concern is to satisfy everyone who comes to him with needs, and is afraid to spend anything especially on himself, considering it to be an improper use property entrusted to him.
“Behold, the Bridegroom is coming, come out to meet Him!”
(Parables about responsibility and grace)
About talents
Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man will come.
For He will act like a man who, going to a foreign country, called his servants and entrusted them with his property: and to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his strength; and immediately set off. He who received five talents went and put them to work and acquired another five talents; in the same way, the one who received two talents acquired the other two; He who received one talent went and buried it in the ground and hid his master’s money.
After a long time, the master of those slaves comes and demands an account from them. And the one who had received the five talents came and brought another five talents and said:
- Mister! You gave me five talents; Behold, I acquired another five talents with them.
His master said to him:
The one who had received two talents also came up and said:
- Mister! You gave me two talents; behold, I acquired the other two talents with them.
His master said to him:
– Okay, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful in small things, I will put you over many things; enter into the joy of your master.
The one who had received one talent came up and said:
- Mister! I knew you that you were a cruel man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter, and, being afraid, I went and hid your talent in the ground; here's yours.
His master answered him:
– You wicked and lazy slave! You knew that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter; Therefore, you should have given my silver to the merchants, and when I came, I would have received mine with profit; So, take the talent from him and give to the one who has ten talents, for to everyone who has it will be given and he will have an abundance, but from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away; and throw the worthless slave into outer darkness: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Having said this, he exclaimed: whoever has ears to hear, let him hear!
(Matt. 25, 13–30; also: Luke 19, 11–28, given below)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. 16th Sunday after Pentecost:
The parable of the talents gives the idea that life is a time of bargaining. It means we must hurry to take advantage of this time, just as at a bargain everyone rushes to bargain for what they can. Even if someone brought only bast shoes or bast, he does not sit idly by, but manages to invite buyers to sell his own and then buy what he needs. Of those who have received life from the Lord, no one can say that he does not have a single talent; Everyone has something, and more than one thing: everyone, therefore, has something to trade and make a profit. Don’t look around and don’t consider what others have received, but take a good look at yourself and more precisely determine what you have and what you can acquire with what you have, and then act according to this plan without laziness. At the trial they will not ask why you did not acquire ten talents when you had only one, and they will not even ask why you acquired only one talent with your one talent, but they will say that you acquired a talent, half a talent or a tenth of it. And the reward will be not because you received, but because you acquired. It will be impossible to justify anything - neither nobility, nor poverty, nor lack of education. When this is not given, there will be no demand for it. But you had arms and legs, tell me, they will ask what you acquired with them? Was there a language that they acquired? This is how the inequalities of earthly conditions are equalized at God’s judgment.
Archpriest Viktor Potapov. Gospel parables:
...Although this slave knew what he should do, but due to his evil will and laziness, he did not work to increase his spiritual wealth. The answer he makes in his own defense is curious: “you... take what you did not put in, and you reap what you did not sow.” In other words, You demand perfection from me, but You Yourself have not given me the strength to acquire this perfection. Familiar words. Many people still say this now. Some person, addicted to some passion and having made several attempts to free himself from it, accuses God of cruelty and injustice: “You demand purity from me, but You yourself have not given me the strength to fight my passion. I prayed to You several times, but You did not help me.” As a result, he abandons all struggle with himself and uncontrollably indulges in his passion. Alcoholics, drug addicts, and all sinners who are addicted to their sin do the same. But on the scales of God's justice such an answer has no value.
Bishop Alexander (Mileant), p. 291–292:
“To everyone who has, more will be given, but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.” Here we are talking primarily about reward in the future life: whoever became rich spiritually in this life will be enriched even more in the future, and, conversely, the lazy person will lose even the little that he previously possessed. To a certain extent, the truth of this saying is confirmed every day. People who do not develop their abilities gradually lose them. Thus, with a well-fed and inactive vegetation, a person’s mind gradually becomes dull, his will atrophies, his feelings become dull, and his whole body and soul become relaxed. He becomes incapable of anything, except to vegetate like grass.
About the builder of the tower and about the king preparing for war
…He who does not bear his cross and follow Me cannot be My disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost, whether he has what it takes to complete it, lest, when he has laid the foundation and is unable to complete it, all who see it begin to laugh at him, saying: “This man started building and couldn’t finish”?
Or what king, going to war against another king, does not sit down and consult first whether he is able with ten thousand to resist the one coming against him with twenty thousand? Otherwise, while he is still far away, he will send an embassy to him to ask for peace.
So, anyone of you who does not renounce everything that he has cannot be My disciple. Salt is a good thing; but if the salt loses its strength, how can it be corrected? not suitable for soil or manure; they throw it away. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!
(Luke 14:27–35)
Bishop Alexander (Mileant), p. 294:
The first of these parables speaks of the need to correctly assess our strengths and capabilities before taking on the work that we are about to do. On this occasion Rev. John Climacus writes: “Our enemies (demons) often deliberately incite us to do things that exceed our strength, so that we, not having success in them, fall into despondency and abandon even those things that are commensurate with our strength...” (“Ladder” ", word 26th). The second parable above talks about the struggle with difficulties and temptations that inevitably occur when doing good deeds. Here, for success, in addition to prudence, dedication is also necessary. That is why both of these parables are connected in the Gospel with the teaching of bearing the cross: He who does not bear his cross and follow Me cannot be My disciple.
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Wednesday of the 10th week after Pentecost:
A light heart is immediately ready for any good thing that presents itself to it, but an unsteady and unhardworking will refuses to do it at first. This weakness occurs in almost everyone. How can one avoid such failure before oneself and before others? Here's how: don't start anything without thinking it over and calculating that you will have enough strength for what you are trying to do. This is what the Lord commanded in the parable of the one who starts a war and begins to build a house. What is this calculation? This, according to the same influx of inspiration from the Lord, is to arm ourselves in advance with self-sacrifice and patience. See if you have these supports of all workers in goodness, and if you have, start the business, and if not, then stock up on them in advance. If you reserve yourself, no matter what you encounter on the way to what you intend, you will endure and overcome everything, and you will complete what you started. Calculation does not mean that if something is too difficult, quit, but rather to inspire yourself to do any work. From here will come firmness of will and constancy of action.
About a friend asking for bread
And he said to them:
– Suppose that one of you, having a friend, comes to him at midnight and says to him: “Friend! lend me three loaves of bread, for my friend came to me from the road, and I have nothing to offer him, - he will answer him from inside: “Don’t bother me, the doors are already locked, and my children are with me on the bed; I can’t get up and give it to you.” If, I tell you, he does not get up and give him out of friendship with him, then, out of his persistence, he will get up and give him as much as he asks. And I will tell you: ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you, for everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Which father among you, when his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? or, when he asks for a fish, will he give him a snake instead of a fish? Or, if he asks for an egg, will he give him a scorpion? So, if you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him.
(Luke 11:5–13)
About the unjust judge
He also told them a parable about how one should always pray and not lose heart, saying:
– In one city there was a judge who was not afraid of God and was not ashamed of people. In the same city there was a widow, and she came to him and said: “Protect me from my rival.” But for a long time he didn’t want to. And then he said to himself: “Although I am not afraid of God and I am not ashamed of people, but, just as this widow does not give me peace, I will protect her so that she does not come to bother me anymore.”
And the Lord said:
– Do you hear what the unrighteous judge says? Will not God protect His chosen ones who cry out to Him day and night, although He is slow to protect them? I tell you that he will give them protection soon. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?
(Luke 18:1–8)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Saturday of the 33rd week:
...If such a hardened person could not resist the persistence of the petition, will not the humane-loving and abundantly merciful God fulfill the petition that is relentlessly offered to Him with tears and contrition?! And here is the answer to why our prayers are often not heard. Because we send our petitions to God not diligently, as if in passing, and, moreover, in such a way that, having prayed once today, tomorrow we wait for the fulfillment of our prayer, without thinking about sweating and overworking ourselves in prayer. So our prayer is not heard and not fulfilled, because we ourselves do not fulfill, as it should, the law of trusting and diligent persistence laid down for prayer.
Bishop Alexander (Mileant), p. 296:
The time of the Savior's public ministry was coming to an end. In the previous parables, the Lord taught about the conditions for the spread of the Kingdom of God among and in people. In His last six parables, the Lord also speaks about His gracious Kingdom, but emphasizes the idea of man’s responsibility before God when he neglects the possibility of salvation or, even worse, when he directly rejects the mercy of God. These parables were told in Jerusalem in the last week of the Savior’s earthly life. These last parables reveal the teaching about the truth (justice) of God, the second coming of Christ and the judgment of people. These last six parables include the parables of the wicked vinedressers, the barren fig tree, the wedding feast, the workers receiving equal wages, the slaves waiting for their master to come, and the ten virgins.
About ten mines
When they heard this, he added a parable: for He was near Jerusalem, and they thought that the Kingdom of God would soon open. So he said:
“A certain man of high birth went to a distant country to obtain a kingdom for himself and return; Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten minas and said to them:
– Use them until I return.
But the citizens hated him and sent an embassy after him, saying:
– We don’t want him to reign over us.
And when he returned, having received the kingdom, he ordered to call to himself the slaves of those to whom he had given the silver, in order to find out who had acquired what. The first one came and said:
- Mister! Your mine brought ten mines.
And he said to him:
- Okay, good slave! Because you have been faithful in small things, take control of ten cities.
The second one came and said:
- Mister! Your mine brought five mines.
He also said to this one: you too be over five cities.
The third one came and said:
- Mister! Here is your mine, which I kept wrapped in a scarf, for I was afraid of you, because you are a cruel person: you take what you did not put in, and you reap what you did not sow.
The gentleman told him:
– I will judge you through your mouth, wicked servant! You knew that I am a cruel man, I take what I did not put in, and I reap what I did not sow; Why didn’t you give my silver into circulation, so that when I came, I would receive it at a profit?
And he said to those present:
– Take the mine from him and give it to the one who has ten mines.
And they said to him:
- Mister! He has ten mines.
– I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away; Bring my enemies, those who did not want me to reign over them, here and kill them before me.”
(Luke 19, 11–28; see also the parable of the talents – Matt. 25, 13–30, cited above)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Friday of the 27th week:
The parable of the ten minas depicts the entire history of mankind until the second coming of Christ. The Lord says in it about Himself that He goes through suffering, death and resurrection to the Heavenly Father to accept the kingdom over humanity, which is all His ancestral property. Those who remain on earth are divided into two halves: into slaves who enslaved themselves to the Lord through obedience to faith, and into those who do not want to have Him as king and work for Him, for the sake of their unbelief. Those who approach the Lord by faith, with a willingness to work for Him, are given the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Holy Sacraments: this is mina - and every believer receives it for service in the circle of believers. When all of the human race who are capable of submitting to the Lord submit to Him, then He will come again as one who has accepted the Kingdom. His first task will be to judge the servants who have acquired what by this grace, and then judgment will follow on those who did not want to have Him as king, that is, either did not believe or fell from the faith. Impress these truths in your mind and do not take your attention away from them, for then there will be a decision that you will not expect to change. Run away from disbelief; but do not believe idly, but also bear the fruits of faith. Having found you faithful in a little way, the Lord will place you over many things.
About evil winegrowers
And He began to speak this parable to the people:
– A certain man planted a vineyard and gave it to vinedressers, and went away for a long time; and in due time he sent a slave to the vinedressers so that they would give him fruit from the vineyard; but the winegrowers, having beaten him, sent him away empty-handed. He also sent another slave; but they beat and cursed him and sent him away empty-handed. And he sent a third one; but they also wounded him and kicked him out. Then the lord of the vineyard said: “What should I do? I will send my beloved son; maybe when they see him they will be ashamed.” But the vinedressers, seeing him, reasoned among themselves, saying: “This is the heir; Let’s go and kill him, and his inheritance will be ours.” And they brought him out of the vineyard and killed him. What will the lord of the vineyard do with them? He will come and destroy those vinedressers and give the vineyard to others.
Those who heard this said:
- It won’t happen!
But He looked at them and said:
– What does this written mean: the stone that the builders rejected has become the head of the corner? Anyone who falls on that stone will be broken, and whoever it falls on will be crushed.
And at that time the chief priests and scribes sought to lay hands on Him, but they were afraid of the people, for they understood that He had spoken this parable about them.
(Luke 20:9–19; also Matt. 21:33–46; Mark 12:1–12)
Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh. Sunday sermons. Sermon on the 13th Sunday after Pentecost, September 2, 1990
We will enter eternity only if we ourselves grow into the measure of true, authentic humanity, if we become worthy of the title of man , because only man can become a partaker of the Divine nature. Until we have grown to this extent, while we are only embryonic, in hope, in God’s dream, we are people, and have fallen so low, so far from Him, the path is still barred to us.
Today's parable warns us precisely about this. We have been given a vineyard from God - this world, which we were ordered to cultivate, sanctify, which we were supposed to introduce into Divine holiness, fill with the presence of the Holy Spirit... And we took this world into our own and act in this world like those unworthy workers of God. We reject the one who comes to us with the news of truth: we do not always kill him (although the Old Testament is full of this horror), but we reject him with coldness, indifference, by turning away from the messenger of God and telling him: “Go away! Die , It’s like you never existed!” And when the Savior Christ turns to us with saving news, do we repent? We are touched by what we see during Holy Week, by what we read in the Gospel, but do we change so that everything becomes new in us? Aren't we we give Should He die the way people made Him die about two thousand years ago?
How will we respond to God when we stand before Him? Will death for us really be a quiet, serene sleep of the flesh, and the soul will come to life? jubilation into eternal life, simply because Christ has risen, simply because the Mother of God has risen?.. Let's think about this: with all our life, purity, truth, holiness of our life, we will become worthy of death for us, according to the word of the Apostle Paul, not by putting off temporary life, but by putting on eternity. Amen!
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Friday of the 17th week after Pentecost:
The parable of the vineyard depicts the Old Testament Church and God’s care for it. The New Testament Church inherited the Old Testament, therefore this parable can also apply to it, and since every Christian is also a living Church of God, it can also apply to him. The latter is more necessary for us. What's a vineyard here? A soul that has received remission of sins, the grace of rebirth, the gift of the Holy Spirit as a guarantee of the inheritance of the eternal kingdom, the word of God, the holy Sacraments, a guardian angel. Who are the workers? Consciousness and freedom. They receive gifts and commit to cultivating them and producing fruit for the Lord. Who are the faulty workers? Those who want to take advantage of Christian benefits and use them as much as is appropriate in the external order of life, but do not bear spiritual fruits worthy of the Lord. Who are the messengers from the Lord? Conscience with the fear of God, the word of God, teachers and shepherds with whom the Lord wants to admonish the faulty. Those who do not want to correct themselves do not listen to them; others persecute them and try to drown out their voice; others go so far as to begin to enmity themselves against the Lord Himself when they reject faith in Him in various forms. End: “The wicked will perish in evil.”
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Thursday of the 28th week after Pentecost:
The parable of the vineyard depicts the Old Testament church; doers are its then-hierarchy. And since she did not correspond to her purpose, a sentence was passed on her: to take the vineyard from her and give it to others. These others were at first St. the apostles, then their successors - the bishops with the entire priesthood. The vineyard of God is one from the beginning of the world, and the purpose of its workers was, is and will be until the end of the age - to bring fruit to the Lord of the vine - saved souls. This is the task of the Christian hierarchy, and therefore ours. We all see to what extent it is being fulfilled. What can I say to this? In many ways – thank God! – but in many, many ways one cannot help but wish for the best. This is especially true for preaching the word of God. A sermon is heard somewhere; and meanwhile, this is the only garden knife in the hands of the workers of God’s grapes. As if it were not fulfilled for us: “The lord of the vineyard will come and destroy those vinedressers and give the vineyard to others.” But lest these others break in and destroy not only the workers, but also the grapes themselves...
Bishop Alexander (Mileant), p. 298–299:
In this parable, the slaves sent by the owner of the vineyard mean the Old Testament prophets, as well as the apostles who continued their work. Indeed, most of the prophets and apostles died a violent death at the hands of “evil vinedressers.” By “fruits” we mean faith and pious works that the Lord expected from the Jewish people. The prophetic part of the parable - the punishment of evil winegrowers and the giving of the vineyard to others - was fulfilled 35 years after the ascension of the Savior, when, under the commander Titus, all of Palestine was devastated, and the Jews were scattered throughout the world. Through the labors of the apostles, the Kingdom of God passed to other nations.
The Pharisees and scribes who listened to Jesus understood the meaning of the parable, because the image of the Vineyard of God was familiar to them from the Holy Scriptures, primarily from the prophet Isaiah.
Song of the Vineyard of the Prophet Isaiah
I will sing to my Beloved the song of my Beloved about His vineyard.
My Beloved had a vineyard on the top of a fattened mountain, and He surrounded it with a fence, and cleared it of stones, and planted choice vines in it, and built a tower in the midst of it, and dug a winepress in it, and expected it to bear good grapes. , and he brought wild berries. And now, inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge between Me and My vineyard. What more should I have done for My vineyard that I have not done for it? Why, when I expected him to bring good grapes, did he bring wild berries? Therefore I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be desolate; I will destroy its walls, and it will be trampled down, and I will leave it desolate: they will neither prune it nor dig it, but it will be overgrown with thorns and thistles, and I will command the clouds not to rain rain on it.
The vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are His beloved planting.
(Isaiah 5:1–7)
About the barren fig tree
And he said this parable:
“A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it, and found none; and said to the vinedresser:
– Behold, I have been coming for the third year to look for fruit on this fig tree and have not found it; cut it down: why does it occupy the land?
But he answered him:
- Mister! leave it this year too, until I dig it up and cover it with manure, and see if it bears fruit; if not, then next year you will cut it down.”
(Luke 13:6–9)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. Thursday of the 25th week after Pentecost:
...When some misfortune befalls others, we need to talk not about why and for what it happened, but quickly turn to ourselves and see if we have any sins worthy of temporary punishment for the admonition of others, and hasten to blot them out with repentance. Repentance cleanses sin and removes the cause that attracts trouble. While a person is in sin, the ax lies at the root of the tree of his life, ready to cut him off. It doesn’t flog because repentance is expected. Repent, and the ax will be taken away, and your life will flow to the end in a natural order; If you don’t repent, wait for the beating. Who knows whether you will live to see next year. The parable of the barren fig tree shows that the Savior begs the truth of God to spare every sinner in the hope that he will repent and bear good fruits. But it happens that the truth of God no longer listens to petitions, and only someone agrees to leave someone alive for another year. Do you know, sinner, that you are not living your last year, not your last month, day and hour?
Bishop Alexander (Mileant), p. 299–300:
God the Father, like the owner of the fig tree, during the three years of His Son’s public ministry, expected repentance and faith from the Jewish people. The Son of God, like a kind and caring vinedresser, asks the Master to wait until He once again tries to make the fig tree – the Jewish people – fruitful. But His efforts were not crowned with success, then a formidable definition was fulfilled, meaning God’s rejection of those people who stubbornly opposed Him. The Lord Jesus Christ showed the onset of this terrible moment by the fact that a few days before His suffering on the cross, on the way to Jerusalem, He cursed a barren fig tree growing along the road (see Gospel of Matthew, 21, 19).
About the wedding feast of the Son, from the Evangelist Matthew
Jesus, continuing to speak to them in parables, said:
“The kingdom of heaven is like a man king, who held a wedding feast for his son and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast; and didn't want to come. Again he sent other slaves, saying: “Say to those invited: behold, I have prepared my dinner, my bullocks and what is fattened, slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.” But they, despising this, went, some to their field, and some to their trade; the rest, seizing his slaves, insulted and killed them . Hearing about this, the king became angry, and, sending his troops, destroyed their killers and burned their city. Then he says to his servants:
– The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy; So go to the crossroads and invite everyone you find to the wedding feast.
And those slaves, going out onto the roads, gathered everyone they found, both evil and good; and the wedding feast was filled with those reclining.
The king, going in to look at those reclining, saw a man there, not dressed in wedding clothes, and said to him:
- Friend! How did you come in here without wearing your wedding clothes?
He was silent. Then the king said to the servants:
– Binding his hands and feet, take him and throw him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth; For many are called, but few are chosen.”
(Matthew 22:1–14)
St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts for every day of the year. 14th Sunday after Pentecost:
The king arranges a wedding feast for his son, sends for those invited once, sends twice, but they do not come because of everyday worries: one took up farming, the other traded. A new invitation was made in other areas, and the wedding chamber was filled with reclining persons. Among them there was one who was not dressed for marriage, and therefore ejected. The meaning of the parable is clear. Wedding feast - Kingdom of Heaven; invitation - preaching the Gospel; those who refused - those who did not believe at all; one who is not dressed for marriage - one who believed, but did not live by faith. Everyone can figure out for themselves which category each of us belongs to. That we are called is clear, but are we believers? After all, you can be among believers, under their common name, without faith. Others don’t think about faith at all, as if it doesn’t exist; another knows something about it and from it and is satisfied; others interpret faith crookedly; some are completely hostile towards her, and everyone is considered to be a Christian, even though they have absolutely nothing Christian. If you believe, consider whether your feelings, your deeds, the garment of your soul, are consistent with faith, for the sake of which God sees you dressed for marriage or for non-wedlock. You can know the faith well and be zealous for it, and in life work according to passions, dress, that is, in the shameful clothing of a sin-loving soul. Such people have one thing in their words, but another in their hearts; on the tongue: “Lord, Lord!”, and inside: “Have me renounced.” Reason about yourself, whether you are in faith and in the wedding garment of virtues, or in the shameful rags of sins and passions.
Saint Nicholas of Serbia. Gospel about the marriage of the Royal Son. – Conversations, p. 215–217:
...The Lord concludes this entire majestic and prophetic parable with the words: For many are called, but few are chosen. This applies to both Jews and Christians. There were few chosen ones among the Jews, and few among the Christians. All of us, the baptized, are called to the royal meal, but the One God knows who His chosen ones are. Woe to those of us to whom the Most High King, before all the angels and saints, says: Friend! How did you come here not wearing wedding clothes? What a shame, and a useless shame! What horror, and irreparable horror! What destruction, and irrevocable destruction! But in fact, these words are spoken to us by the Lord even now, every time we approach to receive Holy Communion and unite with our souls to the Bridegroom Christ: friend! How did you come here not wearing wedding clothes? Let us listen with our hearts and our conscience when we approach the Holy Chalice - and we will hear this question and this reproach. Unless these words of God entail crying and gnashing of teeth in outer darkness as it will be when God tells them to us for the last time. And who among you can guarantee that God is not telling him this for the last time in his earthly life? Who can guarantee that already at night his soul, dressed in the dirty clothes of sin, will not find itself in the brilliant heavenly assembly around the royal table? Ah, who among mortals can know whether this day is not fateful for all of his eternity! Just a few minutes decided the fate of the two crucified robbers. One of them failed to use these few minutes and retreated into outer darkness; while the other wisely used these few minutes, repented, confessed the Son of God and prayed to Him for his salvation: remember me, Lord, when you come into Your Kingdom! And at the same instant the old garment of sin fell from his soul, and his soul was clothed in a shining wedding attire. And the repentant thief, with the dignity of the chosen one, sat down in paradise to the royal meal.
End of introductory fragment.
