Daily Writing

Wednesday, 29 October 2025

Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there. Matthew 13:53

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at the “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen)

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

“And it was when He finished, Jesus, these parables, He after-lifted thence” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus explained that when a scribe is instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven, he is like a householder who brings out treasure, both newbies and oldies. Matthew next records, “And it was when He finished, Jesus, these parables, He after-lifted thence.”

A new and rare word, metairó, to get up and remove oneself, is seen. It is derived from meta, after-with, and airó, to lift. There is no exact English word, but the idea of a plane taking off is somewhat analogous. There is a purposeful intent of getting up and removing oneself from one place to another. Of this word, the Topical Lexicon provides the following information to consider –

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Overview
Underlying the verb translated “withdrew” or “left” […] is the idea of deliberately lifting oneself from a setting in order to proceed elsewhere. It portrays purposeful movement, not aimless wandering, and appears at pivotal junctures in the life of Jesus Christ when a season of public instruction has reached its conclusion.

Occurrences in Matthew’s Gospel

1. Matthew 13:53 – “When Jesus had finished these parables, He withdrew from that place.”
2. Matthew 19:1 – “When Jesus had finished saying these things, He left Galilee and went into the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.”

Both texts follow extended teaching sections (the kingdom parables of chapter 13 and the community-life discourse of chapters 18–19). The verb signals a narrative hinge: completed revelation is now matched by fresh movement, preparing the reader for the next stage of ministry.

Literary Function in Matthew

Matthew organizes his Gospel around five large discourse blocks, each ending with a formula, “When Jesus had finished…” (compare Matthew 7:28; 11:1; 13:53; 19:1; 26:1). […metairó] occurs twice within those formulas, highlighting two transitions:

• From parable instruction to the rejection at Nazareth (Matthew 13:53-58).
• From community ethics to the southward journey culminating in the passion (Matthew 19:1).

The choice of this verb underscores that Jesus’ withdrawals are neither retreats born of failure nor random relocations but divinely timed steps moving the redemptive plan forward.

Historical and Geographical Background

In the first reference, Jesus moves within Galilee, probably from the lakeside to His hometown region. In the second, He journeys from Galilee to Judea “beyond the Jordan,” the customary pilgrims’ route that avoided Samaria. Both settings remind readers that the incarnate Son walked real roads, interacted with real communities, and timed His travels to align with Jewish feast cycles and prophetic destiny (John 7:8-10; Luke 9:51).

Theological Significance

1. Completion of Mission Segments: Each use follows the clause “when Jesus had finished,” emphasizing that the Lord never departs prematurely. His timing illustrates the principle later echoed in John 17:4, “I have glorified You on earth by accomplishing the work You gave Me to do.”
2. Sovereign Direction: The verb underscores Christ’s authority over His itinerary (John 10:18). Opposition, crowds, or regional constraints cannot detain Him once the Father’s purpose in a location is fulfilled.
3. Pattern for Discipleship: Just as Jesus taught and then withdrew, believers are called to combine proclamation with obedient movement (Acts 8:4-5, 26-40).

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Life application: In a single verse that is normally read over without much thought, there is a new and rare word that is purposefully used by Matthew, setting it off from more common words that bear a similar meaning. His choice of wording begs us to stop and consider why the change is made.

What God in Christ did at the coming of Jesus was purposeful. It was meticulously set forth and accomplished by Him. When Jesus successfully trained His disciples in these kingdom parables, and with their acknowledgment that they understood what He was speaking of, He next resolutely lifted Himself up and departed for Nazareth, His hometown.

Upon arrival there, His ability will be questioned based on their having seen Him grow up there. Thus, it will say that they were offended at Him. Jesus purposefully and knowingly went there to contrast the acceptance of His message by the disciples to the disbelieving rejection of His own town.

Have you faced rejection with family or friends because of your acceptance of Christ? Have you noticed a contrast between how those in the church and those you once were so friendly with treat you? Jesus went through this before you did. Be willing to accept what occurs and continue to keep Jesus at the forefront of your attention. He is there with you in your walk.

Lord God, when family and friends have turned away, we know that You are still with us. We will press on from day to day, walking this life with our Lord Jesus. Amen.

Tuesday, 28 October 2025

Then He said to them, “Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old.” Matthew 13:52

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at the “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

“And He said to them, ‘Through this, every scribe, having been discipled in the ‘kingdom the heavens,’ he is like a man, a house-master, who – he ejects from his treasure newbies and oldies’” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus asked His disciples if they understood everything that He had told them as He conveyed to them the parables. They responded that they had. Based on their response, Matthew next records, “And He said to them, ‘Through this, every scribe…’”

The word scribe here is being contrasted to the scribes of the law, who Jesus has already interacted with and who will eventually become some of His most pronounced opponents. Jesus is not equating those He refers to as being scribes like them at all. They had the law, but they studied the law as a means to an end.

The scribes Jesus is referring to are scribes who are, as He says, “having been discipled in the ‘kingdom the heavens.’”

Jesus has set a firm and fixed wall between the law and the kingdom of the heavens. He has mentioned this kingdom in this chapter in verses 11, 18, 24, 31, 33, 37, 41, 43, 44, 45, and 47. In them, He never mentions the law as a vehicle for obtaining righteousness. Rather, His words in verse 11 had already begun to demonstrate and explain the barrier between the two.

If one uses the law as a means to an end, he will never be able to understand what God is doing in the redemptive process in order to restore man to Himself. Think of it! A person studying the law as a means of getting right with God will never understand God, who sees man as treasure hidden in a field, nor a pearl worth selling heaven’s riches in order to obtain that pearl.

Rather, what does Paul say the purpose of using the law is? He explained it to Timothy –

“But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully, ⁹ knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, ¹⁰ for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine, ¹¹ according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.” 1 Timothy 1:8-11

Jesus says a person who looks at the law, or any other part of God’s word, when looking for Jesus (the one who gave up all of heaven’s riches to obtain His treasure), “he is like a man, a house-master.”

Jesus says a scribe of the kingdom of the heavens is like a house-master. Before reading His further explanation, one must ask, “A house-master of what?” What is a scribe’s purpose? He is to evaluate Scripture and interpret it. But Scripture, even in the books of Moses, is filled with obscure stories that do not specially point to conduct in life, but life as it has been conducted.

The scribes of the law used the law, including all of these stories, for the purpose of self-exaltation, be it personal righteousness or the exaltation of the national character of Israel. And this, despite the fact that both are revealed to be lacking throughout all of the historical writings.

Rather, there is almost a complete rejection of the Lord on every turn of the page, while the Lord patiently corrects and guides Israel, keeping them as a people in accord with His word. Jesus says that a scribe of the kingdom is like a house-master “who – he ejects from his treasure newbies and oldies.’”

What is this treasure Jesus refers to? The answer to that must be in understanding what a scribe does with Scripture. As noted above, it is to evaluate and interpret it. If a scribe of the law has missed the mark by looking at Scripture as a means of righteousness as well as personal and national exaltation, then what is he to look for? Well, what did Jesus reveal in His parables?

The answer is that He revealed the contrast between those who hear and obey, those who are a part of what God plants and then grows into a giant entity, those who remain in a fallen world but who fix their eyes on the Lord, those who bear what is good, those who God finds of the highest value in the world, and those for whom He came, having given up everything in order to obtain them as His personal and prized possession.

Everything about His parables refers to Him or those who put Him first, bearing fruit of righteousness based on Him, not on self. Therefore, to pull out treasure from His word, newbies and oldies, we are to look for Him. Those writings that existed point to Him. Those writings that were yet to be written explain Him.

When reading a story, such as Joshua taking Israel across the Jordan, it is to be taken as literal history, but it is to be evaluated based on the work of Jesus. If this is so, then it – by default – must have a future application. Jesus would not arrive on the scene for almost 1400 years. But if we are to find Jesus in the story, then it means that the story has been given as a typological and pictorial representation of something He does or the results of what He has done.

This is pulling out of the treasure, the body of Scripture, newbies and oldies. Finding Jesus in Scripture is akin to rightly understanding the kingdom of the heavens.

Life application: If you want to understand Scripture properly, evaluate it through the lens of Jesus. When you read the story of David and Goliath, consider that God has given that story to reveal Jesus, meaning Him, what He has done, or how that will be realized in the people He has come to save. Everything about Scripture tells us about God in Christ.

Therefore, anytime you evaluate Scripture as a tool for self-exaltation, self-aggrandizement, or personal gain, you have failed to properly evaluate what God intends for you to see. This is why those who insert or reinsert the law as a means of righteousness are so abhorrent to God.

It is why those who look to explain Scripture as a tool of divination (such as rapture date setting or finding codes about the future) will never bear good fruit, and why those who teach a prosperity gospel deceive both those they teach and themselves.

Jesus! Jesus is the key to rightly understanding this precious word.

Lord God, forgive us for always trying to make our time in Your word about ourselves. We read it and conclude that we are the center of what You are trying to tell us. Help us to set ourselves aside and to search for Jesus. In doing this, only then can we understand everything else that this precious word conveys to us. Amen.

Monday, 27 October 2025

Jesus said to them, “Have you understood all these things?”
They said to Him, “Yes, Lord.” Matthew 13:51

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at the “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

“Jesus, He says to them, ‘These all, you comprehend?’ They say to Him, ‘Yes, Lord’” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus finished the parable of the seine. With these parables now complete, Matthew next notes, “Jesus, He says to them, ‘These all, you comprehend?’”

The word suniémi has already been seen, first in Matthew 13:13 –

“Through this I speak to them in parables, because seeing, not they see, and hearing, not they hear nor comprehend [suniémi].”

Jesus, asking them this question with this word, is intended to elicit a contrast between His disciples and those who hear the parables but don’t comprehend them. He has provided enough information through explanation that they are trained in how to grasp His intended meaning. However, should there be another parable they don’t comprehend, they know just what to do –

“And having summoned the crowd, He said to them, ‘You hear and comprehend! ¹¹ Not the ‘entering into the mouth’ it profanes the man, but the ‘proceeding from the mouth,’ this, it profanes the man.’ ¹² Then His disciples having coming near, they said to Him, ‘You have known that the Pharisees, having heard the saying, they stumbled.’ ¹³ And having answered, He said, ‘Every planting that not He planted, My heavenly Father, it will be uprooted. ¹⁴ You leave them! They are blind blind-conductors. And blind, if they should conduct, both – they will fall – into a pit.’ ¹⁵ And Peter, having answered, he said to Him, ‘You expound to us this parable.’” Matthew 15:10-15 (CG).

Jesus gave a parable concerning what profanes a man. The disciples did not know what He was asking them to comprehend, and so they came to Him asking for its meaning. In the case of the parables just expounded to them in Chapter 13, after Jesus asked them if they comprehended all the parables He gave, it next says, “They say to Him, ‘Yes, Lord.’”

Their answer confirms that they fully understood the parables, just as He conveyed them. This should alert us to the fact that in the two parables about the concealed treasure in the field (verse 44) and the pearl of great value (verses 45 & 46), the man mentioned in each was referring to Jesus, not those in the church.

He had consistently used the man in the other parables as a description of Him and what He was doing in redemptive history. To change the subject would have confused the disciples, and they would have then responded in the negative here. But they fully understood that the man who found concealed treasure and the man who found the pearl of great value were the same subject.

Life application: When reading Jesus’ parables, as with any of the unusual stories scattered throughout the Old Testament, remember that if they don’t seem to make sense, it is because we are not thinking about what God is alerting us to, meaning the ongoing process of redemption as it relates to Jesus.

Unfortunately, this is so hard for us to remember that at times, translations will divert to other texts that have amended the meaning, or the translators will purposefully amend the translation because the main text doesn’t seem to make sense to them. When they do this, the reader is left with a void in ever being able to understand what is being conveyed.

To overcome this, one should read the footnotes if the Bible has them. There, they will normally give the literal rendering, sometimes accompanied by a short explanation of why they made their change. These are not the commentaries often included in study Bibles, which are normally useless. Rather, the footnotes contain mechanical information about what is going on in the text or alternate texts for the reader to consider.

Try to remember to read these footnotes and mentally catalog what they are saying. If you don’t understand, there may be an explanation in the prefix or in the addenda to the Bible telling you how to read and understand those footnotes. You will only get out of your time reading the Bible what you put into it. So be sure to read it and carefully study what is going on in it.

Learning to understand what is being conveyed in Scripture is a lifelong journey. So take steps every day in walking that path. You will be rewarded in your mind and soul, and God will be pleased with your pursuit of His wonderful word.

Lord God, thank You for this precious word You have given us. It is a delight to our minds and a joy to consider. In it, we can find that You are fixed on those who cherish You. We are like a pearl of great value that You have gone to infinite lengths to obtain. We may not understand why it is so, but Your word tells us it is. Thank You for this blessed reassurance. Amen.

Sunday, 26 October 2025

and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 13:50

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at the “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

“And they will cast them into the furnace of the fire. There, it will be the lamentation and the gnash of the teeth” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus, still explaining the parable of the seine, noted that at the end of the age messengers would come forth and separate the evil from the righteous. He now completes the parable, beginning with, “And they will cast them into the furnace of the fire.”

It was noted in the parable of the darnel that it could not be referring to the church age. This parable is the same. There is nothing recorded in Scripture that says there will be a separation of the good and the bad at the end of the church age as described in this parable.

Rather, there will be a separation of the saints from the unbelieving world. They will be taken in the twinkling of an eye. After that, the tribulation will come upon the world. It is only after the tribulation that those who survive that ordeal will be separated.

This will be done to ensure the millennium begins on a better note, being populated with those who are acceptable. Once the bad have been separated out and chucked into the fiery furnace, Jesus finishes with, “There, it will be the lamentation and the gnash of the teeth.”

As before, the words speak of great sadness and agony. Pursuit of the temporary pleasures of this life while neglecting the things of God will be rewarded with what the people deserve. There is nothing arbitrary, unfair, or capricious about this. Man will receive his just due for the things done while in the body.

God has offered a better hope to the people of the world in the giving of His Son. What we do with Jesus will be an eternity-defining decision.

Life application: By placing the conclusion of the parable of the darnel next to the conclusion of this parable, one can see how the two parallel –

“Therefore, just as it is gathered, the darnel, and fire – it consumed, thus it will be in the age’s consummation. ⁴¹ The Son of Man, He will send His messengers and they will gather from His kingdom all the snares and those doing lawlessness. ⁴² And they will cast them into the furnace of the fire. There it will be the lamentation and the gnash of the teeth.”

“…they gathered the good into vessels, and the bad they cast out. ⁴⁹ Thus it will be in the age’s consummation. The messengers, they will go out and they will separate the evil from the righteous’ midst. ⁵⁰ And they will cast them into the furnace of the fire. There it will be the lamentation and the gnash of the teeth.”

The parables repeat the same essential information. One may ask, “Why would the Lord bother doing this? Wasn’t one parable sufficient?” The reason is because He is making a point that we should accept as certain and sure to come to pass.

There isn’t one gospel book, but four. And three of them more closely parallel in their presentation while providing new or different aspects of the information presented in the others. This is true with the Old Testament books of Kings and Chronicles to some extent.

In the case of these two parables, Jesus ensures us that what He says about the end times is not to be taken only as a spiritual teaching, but one that is just how things will be at the end of the age. The separation of the wheat from the darnel and the good fish from the bad does not only apply to Jews who enter the tribulation, but the whole world.

For Israel as a nation, though, the point of the tribulation is to bring them as a nation to realize that they missed the coming of their Messiah the first time. It is to bring restoration to the nation in order to fulfill the promises made to them in the Old Testament.

But the whole world of people, Jew and Gentile, must be separated. Those who are deemed worthy will enter the millennium. Those who are not will be cast into the furnace of fire. This is just how it is going to be. The repetition of the same general information in these parables ensures us that it is so.

Lord God, may we carefully evaluate Your word, holding fast to its truths and thoughtfully consider when You are giving us literal information that is to be accepted as such. May we not spiritualize those things that are intended to be taken literally. Help us to more rightly understand and process this wonderful word so that our thinking is mature and proper. Amen.

Saturday, 25 October 2025

So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, Matthew 13:49

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at the “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, scrolling with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).* not available

“Thus it will be in the age’s consummation. The messengers, they will go out and they will separate the evil from the righteous’ midst” (CG).

In the previous verse, Jesus noted that the good fish in the seine would be gathered into vessels, but the bad would be cast out. In explanation of that, He next says, “Thus it will be in the age’s consummation.” The thought is similar to that of verse 39, where the same word, sunteleia, consummation, is used –

“Therefore, just as it is gathered, the darnel, and fire – it consumed, thus it will be in the age’s consummation.”

The parable teaches a similar truth to that one. There is a time of things continuing on, and then there will be a time when things are brought to their consummation. Like the darnel being separated by the messengers from the wheat and cast into the fire, Jesus next says, “The messengers, they will go out and they will separate the evil from the righteous’ midst.”

A new verb, aphorizó, to separate or set off by a boundary, is seen. It is derived from apo, away or from, and horizo, to mark out or bound (as in a horizon). Thus, it signifies a separation of the two by a set boundary.

There will be a separation of the two before things have come to their completion. Considering the end set for the darnel, the end for the bad fish will probably not be so great. What that end is will be seen in the next verse.

As with the parable of the wheat and darnel, the metaphor would have to be so stretched to fit the church age that it would lose much of its intent. There is no separation before the rapture that matches what Jesus is describing here. The people of the world will be going about their lives when, suddenly, and without prior notice, there will be a removal of saved believers.

Only after this will the world enter the tribulation. At the end of the tribulation, a separation will take place before those who are worthy will enter the millennium.

Life application: Jesus’ words in John 3:18 should be remembered –

“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

Paul repeats this thought in Romans 5 –

“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned— ¹³ (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. ¹⁴ Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.” Romans 5:12-14

Jesus says that people are condemned already. Man doesn’t need to do anything to be eternally separated from God. He is conceived and stands condemned. This is not because of committed sin by the person, but because of sin committed by Adam. As all are in Adam, all stand condemned already.

Jesus came to undo this. Despite being born of a woman (He is fully Man), He did not inherit Adam’s seed, which is transmitted from father to child. Rather, His Father is God (He is fully God) and received His Father’s righteous innocence concerning sin. He cut the line of sin in fallen man, thus fulfilling the sign of circumcision.

In living perfectly after He was born, meaning He had not committed sin, He became a suitable substitute for the sins of the world. By faith in what He has done, man can move from fallen Adam to the innocent risen Christ.

Understanding this, there is nothing cold, uncaring, or malicious in God’s judgment of the darnel and bad fish. Rather, there is the perfection of love in the offering of His Son for fallen, corrupt, and already condemned humanity.

No person will be able to come before God and say, “My condemnation is unjust!” Rather, all people will acknowledge the rightness of the situation in relation to the perfect holiness of God. Be sure to get this right. Understanding that God is fully vindicated in His judgment is something people must be taught. Be sure to let those you talk to know that what He does is perfect and beautiful.

Glorious God Almighty, how great You are in Your judgments. We have no right to accuse You of wrongdoing or having an uncaring attitude toward our plight. Rather, what You have done is the height of loving attention to Your wayward creatures. How good and loving You are, O God. Amen.