 time prophecy concerning the Ninevites and the Queen of the South, Jesus went on the attack again. In his parable about the return of the unclean spirit, he charged his opponents of being spiritual vacuous, thus ripe for demonic possession. His argument had two steps. First, he acknowledged the spirituality of his opponents did indeed attract adherents, even Gentile converts. As such, it was like an "exorcism" ("...unclean spirit departs…;" Mt 12:43, Lk 11:24). Second, but when temptation would return to the religious person as it always does (Mt 12:44, Lk 11:25), it can distort even the purist soul with pride and zealous scrupulosity ("seven other spirits more evil than itself"). Thus, even the adherent could grow morally darker than their condition before their change of heart (Mt 12:45, Lk 11:26).
This Q passage tracks mostly word-for-word between Matthew and Luke.
[Mk 3:31-35] After the controversy quasi-chiasmus, Jesus turned from his opponents to his audience. Members of his clan stood in the crowd, seeking to speak to him (Mt 12:46-47, Mk 3:31-32, Lk 8:16-20). He used this moment to declare his allegiance with his followers over that with his family with two questions: "Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?" (Mt 12:48, Mk 3:33). He answered his own questions by declaring familial ties with those who obey "the will of my heavenly Father" (Mt 12:49-50, Mk 3:34-35; note Lk 8:21 shift obedience from the divine will to that of the Good News).
The Parable Discourse in Matthew consisted of two quasi-chiastic structures. The first revolved around the parable of the Sower and the Seeds. The second drew together several parables with an explanation. The high points in both structures were a Scripture quotes. This construction advanced Matthew's thesis that Jesus was the Christ foretold by the sacred writings.
Matthew imported this section from Mark chapter four.
[M 4:1-9; GTh 9] Matthew opened the discourse with the image of Jesus teaching offshore in a boat (Mt 13:1-2, Mk 4:1; see Lk 5:1-3). Then, the Nazarene addressed the crowd with a parable. He told the story of the Sower and the Seeds to catch the attention of his audience in two ways. At the beginning, he described a way of farming his contemporaries considered wasteful, even obscene. The farmer tossed the seed around without care. In below-subsistence Palestine, many of the poor lived at near starvation levels; some worked the land as tenants under extremely demanding landlords. So, they saved the precious little wheat grain and planted it with care at the beginning of the next season. No one in their right mind would throw grain on the roadside (Mt 13:3-4, Mk 4:2-4, Lk 8:5), on rocky soil (Mt 13:5-6, Mk 4:5-6, Lk 8:6) or among thorn seedlings (Mt 13:7, Mk 4:7, Lk 8:7).
Jesus ended the parable with "Let him who has ears to hear, hear" (Mt 13:9, Mk 4:9, Lk 8:8; see note on Mt 11:15). Since everyone has a set of ears, he addressed his parable to all. While the phrase might seem redundant, he meant it to make an emphatic point. This teaching was important!
[M 4:10-12] The disciples asked Jesus a question about the meaning of the parable (In Mt 13:10, Mk 4:10, Lk 8:9). He responded to differentiate the insiders (disciples) and the outsiders (the crowds). He enlightened his followers with knowledge of the Kingdom, while he left the masses to ponder the meaning of his parables (Mt 13:11, Mk 4:11, Lk 8:10). He followed up with a proverb on abundance and lack; those who received the revelation would have blessing, while those who did not would have the little insight stripped away (Mt 13:12, Mk 4:25, Lk 8:18). Finally, he quoted a paraphrase of Isa 6:9 (Mt 13:13, Mk 4:12, Lk 8:10; note that Matthew and Luke stripped away Mark's call to repentance).
However, to emphasize the point, Mt 13:14-15 quoted Isa 6:9-10 directly (which restored the possibility of repentance); Mt 13:15 quoted Isa 6:10 from the Septuagint. Then Jesus added a beatitude for his followers who had converted ("blessed your eyes...your ears") for they received the revelation that the "prophets and righteous" of the past yearned to realize (Mt 13:16-17).
[M 4:13-20] In Mt 13:18, Jesus did not explain who the sower was (evangelist sowing the word; Mk 4:12-13) or what the seed was (word of God; Lk 8:11). From that point, however, his explanation tracks closely with the other Synoptics. The Evil One robbed the message from those who don't understand, like birds eating seed on the hardened road (Mt 13:19, Mk 4:15, Lk 8:12). The shallow person believed only a short time before he wilted in the face of opposition, like the seed on rocky soil burnt up under the noonday sun (Mt 13:20-21, Mk 4:16-17, Lk 8:13). The anxious found their faith choked by the worries of the day and the allure of riches, like seed planted among thorny bushes (Mt 13:22, Mk 4:18-19, Lk 8:14). But faithful disciples who adsorbed the Word and its import effectively evangelized, like the seed that produced an absurdly bountiful harvest (Mt 13:23, Mk 4:20, Lk 8:15).
In Matthew, Jesus told, then explained the parable of the Sower to heighten a prophecy from Isaiah. Now, he grouped other parables and an explanation around a verse from the Psalms.
[GTh 57] In the parable of the Darnel Weeds, Jesus compared the Kingdom to the missionary effort. Like the parable of the Sower and the Seeds, those who spread the Good News would find disappointment in the face of indifference and opposition. With the good (those who received the word) grew along side the bad (those with evil intent; Mt 13:24-25). But no one could clearly tell the difference between them until they matured (Mt 13:26). What should be done? (Mt 13:27-28). This dilemma brought up the problem of evil. Of course, Christians answer that question with the permissive will of God and ultimate justice served at the Final Judgment (Mt 13:29-30).
Notice this kingdom parable described the journey not the destination. In a sense, the kingdom was present in the act of evangelization even if people rebuffed the missionary's efforts.
[Mark-Q Overlap: Q 13:18-19 and Q 13:20-21; GTh 96] Jesus continued the agricultural parables with the Mustard Seed. In Mt 13:31, Jesus described a farmer sowing the seed in his field, while in Lk 13:18-19, he simply said someone planted the seed in his garden; Mk 4:30-31 used the passive construction, not indicating who sowed the seed or where it was sown. In all three gospels, however, the small seed grew rapidly into a bush large enough for the birds to nest in (Mt 13:32, Mk 4:31-32, Lk 13:19).
In Mt 13:33 and Lk 13:20-21, Jesus shifted away from agriculture to describe a common sight, a woman preparing dough for the baking of bread. The verses from both gospels track word-for-word.
Note Jesus continued to compare the Kingdom with the present activity of the missionary. This must have surprised his audience since many listeners expected the appearance of the Kingdom in a jolting instance. Instead of any immediate change, the Kingdom revealed itself over time and organically, from within not from without.
[Mt] While not as detailed as Mt 13:10-17, Mt 13:34-35 repeated the theme of the parable. Jesus told stories to the people to fulfill Psa 78:2 (quote not from the Septuagint).
[Mt] Matthew paralleled the structure of the first chiasmus in the Parable Discourse. Like Mt 13:18-23, Mt 13:36-43 would explain the parable of the Darnel Weeds. This time, Jesus identified the farmer as the model missionary, the Son of Man (Mt 13:36-37). The seed, however, were not the Word but believers and the darnel weeds were "children of the Evil One" (Mt 13:38). Then, after a brief reference to Satan's activities, he immediate shifted the end times in-gathering ("harvest") and Final Judgment