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Matthew 13:1–2. 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. The Lord sat down in the boat so that he could face all the listeners and so that everyone could hear Him. And from the sea He catches those who are on earth. Matthew 13:3. And he taught them many parables, saying: He speaks to the common people on the mountain without parables, but here, when the treacherous Pharisees were before Him, He speaks in parables, so that they, even if they do not understand, would ask Him a question and learn. On the other hand, they, as unworthy, should not have been offered teaching without coverings, for they should not “throw pearls before swine.” The first parable he speaks is one that makes the listener more attentive. So listen! behold, a sower went out to sow; By the sower he means Himself, and by the seed - His word. But He did not come out in a certain place, for He was everywhere; but since He approached us in the flesh, that is why it is said “came out,” of course, from the bosom of the Father. So, He came to us when we ourselves could not come to Him. And he went out to do what? Should the earth be set on fire because of the many thorns, or should it be punished? No, but in order to sow. He calls the seed His own, because the prophets also sowed, but not their own seed, but God’s. He, being God, sowed his own seed, for he was not made wise by the grace of God, but he himself was the wisdom of God. Matthew 13:4. and as he sowed, some fell by the road, and birds came and devoured them; Matthew 13:5. some fell on rocky places where there was little soil, and soon sprang up because the soil was shallow. Matthew 13:6. When the sun rose, it withered and, as if it had no root, withered; By fallen “by the road” we mean careless and slow people who do not accept words at all, because their thoughts are a trampled and dry, completely unplowed road. Therefore, the birds of the air, or the spirits of the air, that is, demons, steal the word from them. Those who have fallen on the rocky ground are those who listen, but, due to their weakness, do not resist temptations and sorrows and sell their salvation. Under the rising sun understand temptations, because temptations reveal people and show, like the sun, the hidden. Matthew 13:7. some fell among the thorns, and the thorns grew and choked it; These are the ones who choke the word with worries. For although the rich man seems to be doing a good deed, his work does not grow or prosper, because worries hinder him. Matthew 13:8. some fell on good soil and bore fruit: one a hundredfold, and another sixty, and another thirty. Three parts of the crop perished and only the fourth was saved, because there were very few people being saved. He speaks about the good land later in order to reveal to us the hope of repentance, for even if someone were stony ground, even if he lay along the road, even if he were thorny ground, he can become good ground. Not all of those who receive the word bear fruit equally, but one bears a hundred, perhaps the one who has complete non-covetousness; another is sixty, perhaps a cenobitic monk, also busy with practical life; the third brings thirty - a person who has chosen an honest marriage and diligently, as soon as possible, goes through the virtues. Pay attention to how the grace of God accepts everyone, whether they have done great or average or small things. Matthew 13:9. He who has ears to hear, let him hear! The Lord shows that those who have acquired spiritual ears must understand this spiritually. Many have ears, but not for listening; That’s why he adds: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Matthew 13:10. And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” Matthew 13:11. 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, Matthew 13:12. for whoever has, more will be given to him and he will have an increase, but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him; Seeing much ambiguity in what Christ said, the disciples, as general guardians of the people, approach the Lord with a question. He says: “it has been given to you to know secrets,” that is, since you have the disposition and desire, it is given to you, but to those who do not have diligence, it is not given. For he who seeks receives. “Seek,” he said, “and it will be given to you.” Look how the Lord spoke a parable here, but only the disciples accepted it, because they were looking for it. So, it’s good, let’s say that to the one who has diligence, knowledge is given and increased, and from the one who does not have diligence and corresponding thoughts, what he thought he had will be taken away, that is, if someone has even a small spark of good, then he will extinguish that too, without fanning it with the spirit and without igniting it with spiritual deeds. Matthew 13:13. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, and they do not understand; Pay attention! For here the question of those who say that the evil are by nature and from God is resolved. They say that Christ Himself said: “It has been given to you to know mysteries, but to the Jews it has not been given.” We say together with God to those who say this: God gives everyone the opportunity by nature to understand what is due, for He enlightens every person who comes into the world, but our will darkens us. This is noted here too. For Christ says that those who see with natural eyes, that is, those created of God to understand, do not see of their own free will, and that those who hear, that is, those created of God to hear and understand, do not hear or understand of their own will. Tell me: did they not see the miracles of Christ? Yes, but they made themselves blind and accused Christ, for this is what it means: “seeing they see not.” Therefore, the Lord brings the prophet as a witness. Matthew 13:14. and the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled over them, which says (Is. 6:9-10): You will hear with your ears and will not understand, and you will look with your eyes and will not see, Matthew 13:15. For the heart of this people is hardened, and their ears are hard of hearing, and they have closed their eyes, lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and lest they be converted, that I may heal them. See what the prophecy says! It is not because you do not understand that I created your heart thick, but because it has become thick, having been, of course, thin before, for everything that becomes thick is first thin. When the heart grew thick, they closed their eyes. He did not say that God closed their eyes, but that they closed them of their own free will. They did this so that they would not be converted and so that I would not heal them. For out of evil will they tried to remain incurable and unconverted. Matthew 13:16. Blessed are your eyes that see, and your ears that hear, Matthew 13:17. 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. Blessed are the sensual eyes of the apostles and their ears, but their spiritual eyes and ears are even more worthy of blessing, because they knew Christ. He places them above the prophets, because they saw Christ bodily, but they only contemplated Him with their minds; in addition, also because they were not worthy of so many secrets and such knowledge as these. In two respects the apostles surpassed the prophets, namely in that they saw the Lord bodily, and in that they were more spiritually initiated into the divine mysteries. So, the Lord explains the parable to the disciples, saying the following. Matthew 13:18. Listen to the meaning of the parable of the sower: Matthew 13:19. To everyone who hears the word about the Kingdom and does not understand, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart - this is who is meant by what was sown along the way. He admonishes us to understand what the teachers say, so that we do not become like those who are on the road. Since the road is Christ, those who are on the road are those who are outside of Christ. They are not on the road, but outside this road. Matthew 13:20. And what is sown on rocky places means one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; Matthew 13:21. but it has no root in itself and is fickle: when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, it is immediately tempted. I spoke about sorrows because many, being exposed to sorrow from their parents or from any misfortunes, immediately begin to blaspheme. Regarding persecution, the Lord spoke for the sake of those who become victims of tormentors. Matthew 13:22. 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. He did not say: “this age drowns,” but “the care of this age,” not “wealth,” but “the deceitfulness of riches.” For wealth, when it is distributed to the poor, does not choke, but multiplies the word. By thorns we mean worries and luxury, because they kindle the fire of lust, as well as hell. And just as thorns, being sharp, dig into the body and can hardly be removed from there, so luxury, if it takes possession of the soul, digs into it and can hardly be eradicated. Matthew 13:23. 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. There are different types of virtue, and different types of virtue. Notice that there is order in the parable. For first of all we must hear and understand the word, so that we are not like those who are on the way. Then one must firmly hold on to what one has heard, and then one must not be covetous. Judge, what is the benefit if I hear and preserve it, but drown it out with covetousness? Matthew 13:24. He proposed another parable to them, saying: The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; Matthew 13:25. while the people were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went away; Matthew 13:26. When the greenery sprang up and the fruit appeared, then the tares also appeared. Matthew 13:27. 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? Matthew 13:28. He said to them, “The enemy man has done this.” And the slaves said to him: Do you want us to go and choose them? Matthew 13:29. But he said: no - so that when you choose the tares, you do not pull up the wheat along with them, Matthew 13:30. leave both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather up first the tares and bind them in sheaves to burn them; and put the wheat into my barn. In the previous parable, the Lord said that the fourth part of the seed fell on the good ground, but in the present one he shows that the enemy did not leave this very seed that fell on the good ground unspoilt for the reason that we slept and did not care. The field is the world or soul of everyone. He who sowed is Christ; good seed – good people or thoughts; the tares are heresies and evil thoughts; the one who sowed them is the devil. Sleeping people are those who, out of laziness, give room to heretics and evil thoughts. Slaves are angels who are indignant at the fact that heresies and corruption exist in the soul, and want to burn and expel from this life both heretics and those who think evil. God does not allow heretics to be exterminated through wars, lest the righteous suffer and be destroyed together. God does not want to kill a person because of evil thoughts, so that the wheat would not be destroyed along with it. So, if Matthew, being a tare, had been plucked from this life, then the wheat of the word, which subsequently had to grow from him, would have been destroyed; in the same way both Paul and the thief, for they, being tares, were not destroyed, but they were allowed to live, so that after that their virtue would grow. Therefore, the Lord says to the angels: at the end of the world, then gather up the tares, that is, the heretics. How? “Bound,” that is, by tying their hands and feet, for then no one can do anything, but every active force will be bound. The wheat, that is, the saints, will be gathered by the reaper-angels into heavenly granaries. In the same way, the bad thoughts that Paul had when he persecuted were burned up by the fire of Christ, which He came to throw onto the earth, and the wheat, that is, good thoughts, was gathered into the granaries of the church. Matthew 13:31. 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, Matthew 13:32. which, although smaller than all seeds, when it grows, is larger than all grains and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air fly and take refuge in its branches. The mustard seed is the sermon and the apostles. For, although they were apparently few in number, they embraced the entire universe, so that the birds of the air, that is, those who have a light and soaring thought, rest on them. So, be you too a mustard seed, small in appearance (for you should not boast about virtue), but warm, zealous, ardent and accusatory, for in this case you become more than the “green,” that is, the weak and imperfect, being yourself perfect, so that the birds of the air, that is, the angels, will rest on you, leading an angelic life. For they too rejoice over the righteous. Matthew 13:33. He told them another parable: The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures (sats) of flour until it was all leavened. By leaven, just as by mustard seed, the Lord means the apostles. Just as leaven, being small, nevertheless changes the whole dough, so you say, you will transform the whole world, although there will be a little of you. Sata was a measure among the Jews, just as in Greece there are quinixes or decalitres. Some by leaven mean preaching, by three sats the three forces of the soul - mind, feeling and will, and by wife - the soul that hid the sermon in all its powers, mixed with it, was leavened and was completely sanctified by it. We must be completely leavened and completely transformed into the divine. For the Lord says: “until everything was leavened.” Matthew 13:34. Jesus spoke all these things to the people in parables, and without a parable he did not speak to them, Matthew 13:35. that what was spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled, saying (Ps. 77:2): I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter what has been hidden since the creation of the world. A prophecy was given that spoke in advance about how Jesus was going to teach, namely, in parables, so that you would not think that Christ had invented some new way of teaching. The word “yes” accept that it is used to designate not a cause, but an effect arising from a known fact, for Christ taught in this way not in order for the prophecy to be fulfilled, but since He taught in parables, it turned out from the case that the prophecy was fulfilled on Him. “He did not speak to them without a parable” only at that time, for He did not always speak in parables. The Lord “said” that which was hidden from the creation of the world, for He Himself revealed to us the heavenly mysteries. Matthew 13:36. Then Jesus dismissed the crowd and entered the house. He let the people go when they did not receive any benefit from the teaching. For He spoke in parables so that He might be asked. They did not care about this and did not seek to learn anything; therefore the Lord justly releases them. And coming to Him, His disciples said: Explain to us the parable of the tares in the field. They ask about this one parable only because the others seemed clearer to them. By tares we mean everything harmful that grows among the wheat: cockle, peas, wild oats, etc. Matthew 13:37–38. He answered and said to 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; Matthew 13:39. the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Matthew 13:40. Therefore, just as the tares are gathered up and burned with fire, so it will be at the end of this age; Matthew 13:41. The Son of Man will send His angels, and from His kingdom they will gather all temptations and workers of iniquity, Matthew 13:42. and they will be cast into the fiery furnace; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth; What had to be said was said above. For we said that here we are talking about heresies that are allowed to exist until the end of the world. If we kill and exterminate heretics, strife and war will arise; and in the event of strife, many of the faithful may perish. But both Paul and the thief were tares before they believed, but they were not destroyed at that time for the sake of the wheat that had grown in them, for in the following time they brought fruit to God, and burned the tares with the fire of the Holy Spirit and the fervor of their souls. Matthew 13:43. then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear! Since the sun seems to us to shine more than all the stars, therefore the Lord compares the glory of the righteous with the sun. But they will shine brighter than the sun. Since the Sun of righteousness is Christ, the righteous will then be enlightened like Christ, for they will be like gods. Matthew 13:44. The Kingdom of Heaven is also 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. The field is the world, the treasure is the preaching and knowledge of Christ. It is hidden in the world. “We preach wisdom,” says the Apostle Paul, “hidden wisdom” (1 Cor. 2:7). He who seeks the knowledge of God finds it and everything he has—whether Hellenic teachings, or bad morals, or riches—he immediately throws it away and buys a field, that is, the world. For he who knows Christ has peace as his own: having nothing, he has everything. The elements are his slaves, and he commands them, like Jesus or Moses. Matthew 13:45. The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for good pearls, Matthew 13:46. who, having found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. The sea is real life, merchants are those who transport through this sea and seek to acquire some knowledge. Many pearls are the opinions of many wise men, but of them only one is of great value—one truth, which is Christ. Just as they say about pearls that they are born in a shell, which opens the tiles, and lightning falls into it, and when it closes them again, pearls are born in them from lightning and from dew, and therefore they become very white - so Christ was conceived in the Virgin from above from lightning - the Holy Spirit. And just as the one who possesses pearls and often holds them in his hand, only one knows what wealth he owns, but others do not know, so the sermon is hidden in the unknown and the simple. So, one must acquire these pearls, giving everything for them. Matthew 13:47. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea and caught fish of all kinds, Matthew 13:48. which, when it was full, they pulled ashore and, sitting down, collected the good things into vessels, and threw the bad things out. Matthew 13:49. So it will be at the end of the age: angels will come out and separate the wicked from among the righteous, Matthew 13:50. and they will be thrown into the fiery furnace: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. This parable is scary, because it shows that even if we believe, but do not have a good life, we will be thrown into the fire. The net is the teaching of the fishermen-apostles, which is woven from signs and prophetic testimonies, for whatever the apostles taught, they supported it with miracles and the words of the prophets. So, this net gathered from all kinds of people - barbarians, Greeks, Jews, fornicators, publicans, robbers. When it is full, that is, when the world has ended its existence, then those in the net are separated. For even if we believed, if we turn out to be bad, we will be thrown out. Not the same ones will be put into vessels, I mean, eternal dwellings. Every action, whether good or evil, they say, is food for the soul, for the soul also has mental teeth. So, the soul will then grind them, crushing its active forces for doing such a thing. Matthew 13:51. And Jesus asked them: Have you understood all this? They say to Him: Yes, Lord! Matthew 13:52. 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. You see how the parables made them more thoughtful. Those who are otherwise ignorant and uneducated understood what was said unclearly. Praising them for this, the Savior says: “therefore every scribe” and further. He calls them scribes, as if they were taught the law. But although they were taught the law, they did not remain with the law, but learned the kingdom, that is, the knowledge of Christ, and received the opportunity to wear out the treasures of both the Old and the New Law. The owner is Christ, like a rich man, for in Him are the treasures of wisdom. He, teaching something new, then cited evidence from the Old Testament. So, He said: “You will answer for an idle word” - this is new; then he gave evidence: “with your words you will be justified and condemned” - this is old, the apostles are like Him, for example, Paul, who says: “imitate me, as I imitate Christ” (1 Cor. 4:16). Matthew 13:53. And when Jesus had finished these parables, he went away from there. Matthew 13:54. And when he came to his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, “These parables” he said because the Lord intended to speak others after a while. He crosses in order to benefit others with His presence. By His fatherland you mean Nazareth, for in it He was nourished. In the synagogue, He teaches in a public place and freely for the purpose that later they could not say that He taught something illegal. so that they were amazed and said: Where did He get such wisdom and strength? Matthew 13:55. Isn't He the son of carpenters? Is not His mother called Mary, and His brothers Jacob and Joses, and Simon and Judas? Matthew 13:56. and are not His sisters all among us? where did He get all this from? Matthew 13:57. And they were offended because of Him. The residents of Nazareth, being unreasonable, thought that the ignobility and ignorance of their ancestors prevented them from pleasing God. Let's assume that Jesus was a simple man and not God. What prevented Him from being great in miracles? So, they turn out to be both senseless and envious, for they should have been more rejoicing that their fatherland gave such good to the world. The Lord had as brothers and sisters the children of Joseph, whom he fathered from his brother’s wife, Cleopas. Since Cleopas died childless, Joseph legally took his wife for himself and gave birth to six children from her: four males and two females - Mary, who by law is called the daughter of Cleopas, and Salome. “Between us” instead of: “they live here with us.” So, these too were tempted in Christ; Perhaps they also said that the Lord casts out demons with Beelzebub. Jesus said to them: A prophet is not without honor except in his own country and in his own house. Matthew 13:58. And he did not perform many miracles there because of their unbelief. Look at Christ: He does not reproach them, but meekly says: “there is no prophet without honor” and further. We humans always have the habit of neglecting those close to us, but we love what belongs to others. “In his house” he added because His brothers, who were from the same house, were jealous of Him. The Lord did not perform many miracles here because of their unbelief, sparing them themselves, so that, even after the miracles, they would remain unfaithful and would not be subjected to even greater punishment. Therefore, he did not perform many miracles, but only a few, so that they could not say: if he had done anything at all, we would have believed. You also understand this in such a way that Jesus, to this day, is dishonored in His fatherland, that is, among the Jews, but we, strangers, honor Him.