
Matthew 13:44-58
13:44 | In ancient Israel, when someone found a buried treasure and unearthed it, that treasure belonged to the owner of the property. But if the finder could buy the property, then everything in it would belong to the finder. Jesus tells us that what seems like costly sacrifice today will one day be revealed as a pittance when compared to the riches of the kingdom of heaven (Rom. 8:18; Phil. 3:7-8).
13:45-46 | This short parable mirrors the meaning of the parable of the buried treasure. Whoever finds the pearl of great price – God’s kingdom – will happily give up everything to possess it.
13:47-50 | In the seventh parable in this chapter, Jesus tells of a dragnet being pulled into a boat with good fish that looked much like bad fish. Because He speaks these parables from a boat on the water, He may be saying that the parables themselves are like the dragnet, distinguishing those who listen from those who do not. God knows the difference, and one day the truth will be revealed (1 Tim. 5:24).
13:51 | Despite what His disciples said, they did not truly understand all of Jesus’ teaching. No doubt they understood more than the multitudes, but even they had a limited understanding of Jesus’ words.
13:52-53 | Jesus targets His own disciples with the mystery of the last parable in this chapter. Like a householder (homeowner) who values the new things along with the old, His disciples must understand the new things learned from Him in light of the OT Scriptures.
13:54-58 | When Jesus returned to His hometown (own country) of Nazareth, He found a population unwilling to recognize Him as the Messiah. They acknowledge His remarkable teachings and His many miracles but felt offended by Him because they did not see how a hometown boy could possibly have risen so high (Mark 6:3; Luke 4:24; John 4:44; 6:42). In the Gospels, Jesus is the only person said to scandalize others.
13:58 | Jesus’ power was not diminished by the people’s unbelief; He did not do many mighty works in Nazareth because they were not coming to Him for miracles. It is also possible that He wanted to limit the amount of what could be called the “high-profile attention” to avoid creating greater public skepticism and greater opposition from the Pharisees and teachers.