The Parable of the Dragnet
Notes
Transcript
Matthew 13:47-50 New King James Version
The Parable (Matthew 13:47-48)
Matthew 13:47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind.
· The introductory phrase “again, the kingdom of heaven is like” corresponds exactly with the opening of the Parable of the Pearl of Great Price immediately before it (13:45). If the term πάλιν (“again”) is dropped, the rest of the phrase is found at 13:31, 33, 44 as well. [1]
Matthew 13:48 When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad.
The Interpretation of the Parable (Matthew 13:49-50)
Matthew 13:49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous
Matthew 13:50 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
There are two emphases in this parable:
1. The gathering (v.47)
2. The sorting (vv.48-50)
a. The rule of end stress requires that the concern of the parable is not the gathering process or Jesus’ implied association with sinners but the separation process (v. 48b).[2]
Three Realities We Must Recognize from The Parable of the Dragnet:
1. The kingdom of heaven has come and people of every kind are being caught in it (Matthew 13:47).
a. Matthew 13:47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind,
i. The word here, sagēnē, is a seine or dragnet. Such a net could be quite long with cork floats along the top and lead weights along the bottom. It could be stretched between two boats or laid out from one and then pulled to shore by ropes. Everything in its path would be caught as it was pulled in.[3]
ii. At least 20 species of fish are found in the Lake of Galilee, most of which could be eaten, though some were more favored than others.[4]
iii. The word for “kind” (γένος) is more commonly used for a “race” or “tribe” of people. [5]
1. The different kinds of fish stand for different nationalities of human beings.[6]
iv. Ezekiel 47:10 may have influenced Jesus in this direction.[7]
1. Ezekiel 47:10 It shall be that fishermen will stand by it from En Gedi to En Eglaim; they will be places for spreading their nets. Their fish will be of the same kinds as the fish of the Great Sea, exceedingly many.
2. The gathering of the sea creatures by nets is an eschatological symbol. In an eschatological vision Ezekiel beheld the netting of fish (with the σαγήνη-type of net in the LXX) of many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea (Mediterranean), on the shore of the Dead Sea (Ezek 47:10).[8]
v. “From every kind” is sometimes interpreted as expressing Matthew’s universal concerns and as an anticipation of the Great Commission in 28:19–20, especially since “kind” (genos)is used of races or nations.[9]
1. Matthew 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
2. Matthew 28:20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
2. When the kingdom net is full, people will be sorted (Matthew 13:48-50).
a. Matthew 13:48 which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away.
b. Matthew 13:49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just,
c. Matthew 13:50 and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”
i. That the net is not pulled out of the lake until it is full is perhaps intended to emphasize, as in the parable of the weeds, that there will be no premature separation; it will wait until everything is ready in God’s good time.[10]
ii. Good fish would have been those preferred for selling and consumption; bad fish would have included those not kosher (see Lev 11:9–12) and those too small or diseased for eating.[11]
iii. The worthless would be any creatures that are not clean, edible, and marketable. [12]
1. But one significant detail is that the wicked are picked out “from among” (literally “out of the middle of”) the righteous. The phrase draws attention to the theme which we saw also implicit in the parable of the weeds, though not specifically drawn out in its explanation, that until the final judgment there can be no separate existence for the true people of God: the wicked will be in the middle of them,[13]
d. Matthew 13:40 Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age.
e. Matthew 13:41 The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness,
f. Matthew 13:42 and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
i. The imagery of “weeping and gnashing of teeth” is used six times by Matthew and can be regarded as a typically Matthean refrain that concludes solemn declarations of judgment on the part of Jesus (8:12; 13:42; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30).[14]
3. Our role is to cast the net while there is still time.
a. Matthew 4:19 Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
b. Matthew 13:44 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
c. Matthew 13:45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls,
d. Matthew 13:46 who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
[1]Hultgren, A. J. (2002). The Parables of Jesus: A Commentary. (D. N. Freedman & A. B. Beck, Eds.) (p. 305). Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
[2]Snodgrass, K. (2018). Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus (Second Edition, p. 491). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
[3]Snodgrass, K. (2018). Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus (Second Edition, p. 486). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
[4]France, R. T. (2007). The Gospel of Matthew (pp. 542–543). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publication Co.
[5]Blomberg, C. L. (2012). Interpreting the Parables (Second Edition, p. 252). Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press.
[6]Blomberg, C. L. (2012). Interpreting the Parables (Second Edition, p. 252). Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press.
[7]Blomberg, C. L. (2012). Interpreting the Parables (Second Edition, p. 252). Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press.
LXX The Septuagint.
[8]Hultgren, A. J. (2002). The Parables of Jesus: A Commentary. (D. N. Freedman & A. B. Beck, Eds.) (p. 305). Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
[9]Snodgrass, K. (2018). Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus (Second Edition, p. 489). Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
[10]France, R. T. (2007). The Gospel of Matthew (p. 543). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publication Co.
[11]Blomberg, C. L. (2012). Interpreting the Parables (Second Edition, p. 251). Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press.
[12]Hultgren, A. J. (2002). The Parables of Jesus: A Commentary. (D. N. Freedman & A. B. Beck, Eds.) (p. 305). Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
[13]France, R. T. (2007). The Gospel of Matthew (p. 543). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publication Co.
[14]Hultgren, A. J. (2002). The Parables of Jesus: A Commentary. (D. N. Freedman & A. B. Beck, Eds.) (p. 306). Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.